A Twist of Fate
by Lady Stellar
Summary: After the defeat of the Great Devourer, Lord Garmadon is hailed as a hero. When a prophecy is rediscovered, Garmadon realizes that the only way to ensure his continued victory is to get the kunoichi on his side. Will the ninja be able to find the kunoichi and convince them to join the good side, or will Garmadon find the kunoichi first and leave Ninjago with no hope?
1. Prologue: A New Era Awakens

**Hey there, wide world of Ninjago fans! I'm Lady Stellar, and here's the first chapter of my new story. I actually have several chapters written out and checked over, so hopefully you won't have to wait too long before seeing the first real chapter.**

**Thank you SO MUCH to KaitouKiwi and TombRaiderNinja for betaing this story! You've both helped me out a lot, and I couldn't be more thankful!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

The dreams were haunting him again.

A darkness coming in and surrounding Ninjago while five figures struggled to fight it off. Up until the Great Devourer incident, that was the extent of the dreams. It was a relief for Sensei Wu. He hoped that a certain prophecy would never come to pass.

The old man knew more than anyone that not all prophecies came true. A long time ago, him and his brother were supposed to be the ones to save Ninjago from a great evil. Now, his brother was that great evil.

What a funny thing fate was. Never set in stone.

Leading up to the Great Devourer, the dreams were relentless. They crept in when he least expected them to. They were horrible nightmares, but they always ended the same. Five ninjas gathered in the center of the darkness and fought it off. A happy ending to a potentially terrible fate.

He didn't know why he'd expected them to go away. Garmadon had ended up helping them defeat this evil, but now he was stronger than ever.

The dream had began like all of the others. Ninjago, surrounded by darkness. Sensei Wu could feel its chill, feel how it smothered him, even in the dream. It filled him with dread. The darkness swirled around Ninjago, tightening its grasp until all that was left was Ninjago City. A single piece of light in the darkness.

One by one, the ninja rose up in the middle. First Cole, the leader. The first of Sensei's students. He used his hands to pull rocks from the earth, a powerful force even without his golden weapon. Zane was next, surrounded by crystals of ice and snow. They swirled around him like a blizzard, battling the cold of the darkness. Jay's arrival was made known by a bolt of lightning, the air around him sizzling as he stepped forward. Lights flared around him as the lightning crackled, his eyes burning blue. An even brighter flash of light signaled Kai's appearance. His amber eyes glowed the same color as the flames surrounding him.

In the middle, the final figure appeared in a flash of green light that made the darkness draw back. Lloyd stepped out, but he was older now. He looked just like his father, only with blond hair. He sent shots of green light into the darkness, and the ninja's powers began to swirl around him as well.

The battle began. Sensei Wu could only watch in horror as they were each overtaken. Something had happened, something had changed the path of their destiny, and it was different now.

This time, when the ninjas tried to fight off the darkness, they failed.

In mere moments the ninja were wiped out, leaving only Lloyd in the center. He began to glow gold as the darkness crept in, but as soon as it touched him, the gold turned black and Lloyd was swept into the darkness as well.

Everything stopped.

Sensei Wu watched as Ninjago was finally overtaken by the darkness that threatened it. If this was a vision of the future, then things were going to go very, very wrong.

Then out of the darkness, there was light.

A bright pink light shone in the middle, illuminating the dark Lloyd. He squinted up at the light as the shadows were washed off of him.

Sensei couldn't see through the pink light, but a new figure appeared to capture his attention.

She wore yellow and orange, and two fans were tucked into her belt. With every step she took, the winds gusted more. They moved the darkness out of the way, uncovering Jay, who had collapsed on the ground. She grabbed his hand, bringing him to his feet beside her. The wind whipped around her as Jay's lightning came back to life.

A new chill overcame Sensei Wu, and he watched as the next figure stepped out of the darkness with her own shadows. Her red and grey uniform was dark, blending into the darkness she created. It wasn't as angry as the rest of the darkness, this chill was almost comforting. Her katana was sheathed across her back, but she didn't need it as she raised a hand, sending shadows over where Kai had fallen. His flames returned and danced with her shadows as she grabbed his hand, and the kunoichi of air grabbed his other hand.

Sensei heard the next kunoichi before he saw her. Waves crashed against an invisible shore, their sound crescendoing to a roar as a figure rose. Her colors were purple and turquoise, and she could almost blend in with the water that swirled around her. Her whip was hanging from her belt. Her movements were lazily graceful as she walked toward the next fallen ninja. With a wave of her hand, water washed over Zane. He froze every drop of water that touched him, letting them turn into shards of ice. The kunoichi of water grabbed his hand, her water feeding his ice. Her other hand went to Kai, their water and fire colliding to make steam where their hands connected.

The last kunoichi appeared in green and brown, plants blooming where she walked. A bo staff was slung across her back as she walked. Her movements were light and fluid, almost as if she had a background in dancing. She approached the last ninja, Sensei's first student. Her plants grew from his earth, and she cleared the area around him. She reached out to him with one slender hand. Cole took her hand, allowing her to help him up. Once they were up, she reached for Zane's other hand. The plants closest to Zane froze from his icy powers. Cole reached out for the first kunoichi, his opposite element.

There was a bright flash as the circle was connected, and the pink light in the middle solidified into a human form. She was young, as young as Lloyd was now. When she reached for Lloyd's hand, she grew taller, aging as Lloyd had earlier in his dream. Her suit was pink and silver, resembling the pink light that emanated from her.

As their hands joined, her light changed from pink to silver. Instead of glowing green, Lloyd now shone with a golden light.

And at long last, the darkness was fought off.

Not every prophecy came true, and Sensei Wu had hoped that the prophecy of the kunoichi would remain dormant for many years. Maybe even forever.

But it was time for them to rise.

**So, this is just a prologue! It gives you a peak into what Sensei knows and part of what he's going to hide from the others for most of the story. We'll be meeting the first kunoichi next chapter - spoiler alert, you already know her! **

**Please leave some kind of review or feedback, I'd love to hear what you think! Don't be shy! And if I get a couple reviews, I may update mid-week instead of next weekend like I'm planning.**

**Edit: 11/22/19**

**So I got a complaint that my story was a little too similar to someone else's. I checked it out, discovered that there were a few similarities that were too close, and I completely revamped this prologue. Good news is, I like it a lot better! And if anyone has any complaints, I'm happy to hear them out. I have a lot of ideas for this story, and I know that female ninja/kunoichi is/was a pretty popular AU in this fandom. I've done my best to make mine pretty unique, even if it doesn't seem that way right now. I've worked really hard on this story though, and these characters are my babies. They've all had a lot of time and effort poured into them, and any similarities to another story is purely coincidental.**


	2. A Familiar Face

**Hey guys, I'm back with the first REAL chapter! We're gonna see from a few different points of view here, so I hope you guys like it! By the way, these first two chapters are the shortest ones I've written, things start picking up pretty soon.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

The next morning, Cole woke up with a crick in his neck. He winced, and moved his head back and forth, while massaging the back of his neck with a large hand. He blinked, and realized what had rudely awoken him.

Sensei had been banging on yet another gong (did this guy ever run out of them?), and the ninja were sleepily sitting up. "Evil doesn't rest, and neither should you!" Sensei called, and the old man looked as wide awake as ever. "We have much to discuss today! When you're ready, I'm calling Nya over, so be decent."

And with that, the old man was gone. Cole stood up, and looked around at his fellow ninja. "Well, let's get ready."

Jay yawned. "Can we get breakfast first?"

Kai nodded, running a hand through his hair, which made it even messier. "Sounds like a plan to me."

Zane stood up, and headed to the small kitchen in their pathetic living area. "I can do that. I do not take long to get ready."

The other ninja nodded, yawned, and began getting ready for whatever news Sensei Wu had for them.

...

Nya woke up to her phone ringing, a necessity since she lived separate from the ninja. Their apartment was so small and cramped, it wasn't suited for a female to live with them. They hardly had any privacy between the five of them. Nya wasn't even sure if Sensei Wu was staying with them or not.

She rolled over in her bed, and grabbed her phone on the bedside table. The only calls she got were from her team. Mostly from Sensei. "Yeah?" she answered.

"I need you to meet us at the apartment, and you can dress casually. Get there around the normal time. We have much to discuss," Sensei hung up after that, and Nya blinked at the abruptness of the call. _It ended just as it started.._' she thought wryly.

Laughing to herself, she rolled out of bed, and headed into the small bathroom. She brushed her smooth, straight black hair out, so it was as shiny as normal.

She brushed her teeth before putting her hair up so she could hop in the shower. She hadn't taken one last night, so it had to happen this morning. Nya stepped out five minutes later, dripping wet.

She wrapped a towel around her as she headed to her closet, grabbing her white shirt with red cherry blossoms, and green pants with the same cherry blossoms crawling part of the way up her leg. She pulled it on quickly, knowing she was going to be late.

Especially since she had to walk.

...

Nya walked into the apartment a little later than normal. Everyone else appeared to be waiting on her. Which was strange, they almost always started without her.

Sensei Wu nodded to acknowledge her presence, and motioned for her to sit down.

She slowly sat down beside Jay, a bit unnerved at the situation. Today was a very strange day.

"I had a dream last night," Sensei began, speaking in a quiet tone, "about the fate of Ninjago."

Several of the ninja sent him questioning looks. "But-" Jay began.

"Let me finish."

They nodded, and waited for the old man to continue. Nya absentmindedly fiddled with the hem of her shirt.

"I have learned that you will need help during the final battle."

"WHAT!" Kai yelled, standing up abruptly. "We've gone this far, and haven't needed any help!"

Nya glared at him for that comment. She had saved their butts multiple times with her Samurai X suit. "What about me, Kai?" she asked. Her face was blank, and she didn't show any emotion as she tried to judge how he would react.

Jay jumped in. "Yeah, she's right! Nya's saved us enough times she's practically a full member of the team as Samurai X, not just as herself." Jay smiled at her, and Nya returned it with a grateful look. He always stood up for her.

Kai's face turned red- Nya wasn't sure if it was out of anger or embarrassment. "That's- that's different! That's not a permanent thing, we could still survive as a team without Samurai X!"

His sister gave him a look. "Hm, tell me what you were going to do about those snakes then, huh? Was your oh-so-marvelous plan going to be to rescue yourself? And your teammates? And Lloyd?"

The shade of red on Kai's face darkened as he fumbled for an answer. "I- uh- I mean, we could've- uh-"

A smirk crossed Nya's face. "That's what I thought."

Sensei coughed, bringing their attention back to himself. "I've brought you here to tell you, there will be new ninja. Four, to be exact. Ninja isn't exactly the right word for it- kunoichi suits them better."

Zane gasped, the only one who really understood the word. "Female ninja?" he mused to himself.

The room exploded in shouts, all overlapping each other.

"WHAT-"

"HOW CAN THIS BE?"

"-GIRLS?!"

"-FOUR OF THEM?"

"-KUNOICHI!"

"Well this is an interesting turn of events."

"YES!"

The shouts stopped at the sound of the last voice. Everyone turned and stared at Nya, who had a wide grin on her face. "It's about time! I won't be the only girl anymore, and maybe some of you will learn that us girls can totally kick your butts."

Sensei smiled. "In fact, one of them is closer than you might think."

Lloyd blinked. "Have we met her?" he wrinkled his nose. Girls. Ew. What did girls have? Cooties. Cooties were gross. Besides, they weren't very nice...

Sensei laughed. "Yes, you all are very familiar with the first one."

Nya's heart skipped a beat as his gaze landed directly on her. "Me?" she whispered.

The old man nodded, a small smile peeking out from under his mustache.

"My sister CAN'T be a ninja!" Kai exploded, and stood up.

"Kunoichi-" Zane began, but Kai cut him off.

"WHATEVER, ZANE! It doesn't matter! She can't! She just-"

"I'm just what, Kai?" Nya's voice was sharp and deadly, and Kai gulped.

"You're my sister, Nya, and I don't want to see you get hurt," he whispered.

"I'll have you know, Kai," she stood up, getting right up in his face. "I could kick your butt any day. I saved you guys from the serpentine. I'll save you guys again before this whole saving the world thing is over. You need to suck it up, and deal with it. You were proud of me as Samurai X, now be proud of me as part of your team," she pleaded, grabbing one of his hands.

Kai looked down and sighed. "I guess you have a point... but if you ever get in any danger, I'm helping you out, no matter what you say."

"If you insist," Nya laughed and rolled her eyes. "But we're all ninja now, so you may want to focus on yourself," she winked.

Kai blushed as red as his gi as the other ninja jeered playfully. Lloyd grinned. Much better than TV. Kinda made him wonder what having a sibling would be like...

Sensei walked over to Nya. "I need to give you your new suit. NINJA-GO!"

His tornado overcame her, and Nya felt dizzy for a moment. That quickly passed, and she looked down at her new outfit.

The majority of her outfit was a yellow color that complimented her skin tone perfectly. She had on a yellow halter top, which clung to her torso, but it was light and breathable. There was a small keyhole in the shape of a diamond on her chest. She had a tight yellow pair of shorts on, but it was just like the top, light and breathable. A thin orange belt wound its way around her hips. She wore a pair of boots that reached up to just above her knees. A pair of orange gloves covered her hands, reaching up to the middle of her forearms, but leaving her fingers bare.

The last piece of her uniform was a mask, much like the ninja's, which covered the lower half of her face. It was yellow, but there were strips of orange visible in it. Her hair was held out of her face by a small orange clip.

Jay couldn't stop staring. Nya... His love... Looked so beautiful. She was gorgeous.

Kai clenched his hands into fists. 'My sister can't go around like that.'

Cole, Zane, and Lloyd were simply astounded that there were more ninja- no, kunoichi.

"Nya, you are the kunoichi of air. You have the ability to create a gentle breeze or stir up a mighty tornado. Of course, there are many obstacles on your way to becoming a true kunoichi. Do you accept?"

"Of course, Sensei."

Kai finally lost it. "SHE CANNOT GO OUT LIKE THAT!"

Nya looked at him. "Says who." It wasn't a question, rather, a challenge.

"Me."

The new kunoichi of air walked up to him. "Kai, I'm not a baby anymore. You need to let me be in charge of myself. I have that power now."

Kai closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly began to calm down. "Fine. But if I see any perverts trying to make a move on you-"

"Please feel free to beat them up with Jay."

Kai looked at the ninja of lightning, who hadn't moved since Nya got her outfit. "Good."

Lloyd nudged Jay, who yelped. "Nyayoulookgorgeous!"

Nya hid a giggle behind her hand. "Thanks, Jay."

The ninja of lightning blushed, realizing what he'd said. Kai cast a glare toward the blue ninja.

Sensei stood up. "In that case, everyone head for the dragon. We need to go after Nya's weapon."

...

The whisperings had grown louder once again. They were always there when he visited this place, never ceasing, never stopping. They often made his head hurt. All they wanted was violence, power, death...

Granted, so did he, but this was rather excessive. But he had to listen. Even if it meant he was caught in limbo and he was vulnerable to the snakes. He had to know what the darkness had to say...

Suddenly, the whispering began to come together. One message stood out from the chaotic whispers.

"Go... find the kunoichi... turn them... make them yours..."

The chant repeated itself as Garmadon listened. A grin stole across his face.

Of course! How else to defeat the ninja but to turn the new kunoichi to his side? He had felt it. The next segment of the prophecy was underway, probably due to the fact that he had the Mega Weapon. If the ninja had more help on their side, there would be no saving his plans. But if he could get to the kunoichi first...

Since he had saved Ninjago from the Great Devourer, Garmadon was hailed as a hero. That is, as long as no one knew the real story. He reached into his pocket and pulled out half of the prophecy. It highlighted the kunoichi.

Darkness. She'd be an interesting one to go after. The shadows he conversed with all began to converge on a location on the map of Ninjago. Garmadon grinned darkly. Her location was just to the east of here... and besides, her element would be extremely useful in the quest to conquer Ninjago.

"Lord Garmadon!"

Pounding on the door shook the evil Lord out of his dreams. He stood up, irritated by the disturbance.

"What," he growled, throwing open the door.

A Hypnobrai saluted him clumsily. "Sssir, where are we headed next? The ninjasss are-"

"Set course for Shian Hills," Garmadon interrupted. He slammed the door, assuming that the snakes would follow his orders. He may be outnumbered by them, but he still had the Mega Weapon.

And that was enough to make all of Ninjago bow to him.

**Oh no, what does Garmadon have planned? Next chapter is Nya getting her weapon, and I'll have it posted in a week!**

**Please leave a review!**


	3. Where the Wind Blows

**Oops, I'm a couple days late! I meant to post this Sunday, but here I am on Tuesday. I had a couple exams on Monday, but here I am with chapter two! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.**

Nya sat behind Jay on the dragon, with her arms wrapped around his waist and her head on his shoulder.

They were headed to Angel's Landing, where her weapons would be. It was the tallest mountain in all of Ninjago, so high that angels were said to land there. No one had ever made it to the top, but it was rumored that a cave was up there, with a priceless treasure. Apparently the 'treasure' was the Fans Of Gales. Her weapon to aid her in controlling her element.

Nya was smiling widely. She had never been so excited in her life! This was everything she had wanted- even though she had been Samurai X, a part of her was still jealous of her brother. He always got everything.

But now she was like him. Only, she was a kunoichi, not a ninja. But they were practically the same thing. She would have a weapon. That made her feel a bit smug. Everyone else's weapons had been taken by Garmadon so he could defeat the Great Devourer. Unfortunately, he had never given them back.

They had regular weapons now, only cheap imitations of their old ones. Nya had to stifle a laugh every time she thought about it. They were still struggling to adjust to the changes.

The massive dragon landed down at the bottom of the mountain. Nya had been lost in thought, and hadn't even noticed that they were there until they landed. The mountain scraped the atmosphere, the very top lost in clouds. There was a pathway, so it wouldn't be like rock climbing, which was Cole's specialty, not hers.

"Nya?" Jay's voice came from behind her, shaking her out of her thoughts.

She turned and grinned at her kinda-boyfriend. "I'm fine," she reassured him.

Their relationship was interesting. They'd had their date, there was an obvious chemistry between them, but not much had happened since then. They'd never really confirmed their relationship - whatever it was.

Everyone climbed off of the dragon, Jay helping Nya down. She smiled and thanked him. Sure, she didn't need that kind of help, but it was very nice of him. Jay was sweet and chivalrous, and she appreciated it. He really was amazing.

The group gathered at the base of the mountain, staring up at the top. It would take hours just to climb it, not to mention getting back down.

"Do we really have to climb that?" Lloyd complained.

Nya chuckled. He was still just a child, and it showed. She opened her mouth to say something, but Sensei responded first.

"We will journey as far as we can with Nya," Sensei promised, putting up a hand to silence any further protest.

The rest of the ninja collectively rolled their eyes as they pulled up their hoods, and Nya brought her mask up to cover the lower half of her face. It hid her smirk. She knew the guys cared about her, but they were also ridiculous about anything other than video games and Garmadon.

Sensei began making his way up the path. "Come now, students. If we go now, we may be done by dinner."

A collective groan was heard, but the ninja and Nya began trudging up the path. The higher they got, the lighter the air was, and the more the wind blew. The town below them grew small. Nya wasn't even sure what town it was, they'd flown over it too fast.

A bead of sweat trickled down the back of her neck. The sun was making its way across the sky. Nya was now in the front of the pack. The wind was like a cool breeze to her, but it was beginning to take its toll on the rest of the party. Lloyd had given up long ago, lying dramatically on the ground and refusing to move. Zane had offered to stay with him, and the rest of them had continued.

Sensei Wu began to falter just over halfway up. The air was beginning to get to him more than the wind, so he headed back down to join Zane and his nephew.

The last three with her were unsurprising. Cole, their leader, was still there because he had to maintain his image, and trudging up mountains was something he'd done for years. This was obviously his thing. He was only barely out of breath as they climbed.

Jay was her almost-boyfriend. Nya suspected he was in love with her, and she believed she was beginning to feel the same way. His loyalty came from his feelings for her, and she imagined that's what kept him going.

And, of course, Kai was still there. Her stubborn brother would be loyal until he was blue in the face from being so tired.

Nya stopped and looked back at the three boys. "You can stop now, you know," she reassured them, pleading slightly. She didn't want any of them to get hurt for her, but she was incredibly flattered that all of them were still there.

The boys exchanged glances before looking back at her. Cole, ever the leader, spoke for them. "Nya, we're with you as far as we can go," he promised, stepping forward and holding out his hand.

"Yeah!" Jay exclaimed, stepping forward hurriedly. "You're our teammate now, and we're here to support you." He added his hand on top of Cole's.

Nya smiled softly, understanding what they were doing. It didn't really matter that the whole team wasn't there, or that her own team of kunoichi didn't even exist yet. They were already accepting her, and it almost made her want to cry.

Blinking back the wetness in her eyes, Nya felt a warm hand cover hers. She knew that unnaturally warm hand - it went along with his element. Her wet brown eyes met his wide amber ones, filled with sibling love and comradeship. He smiled gently, putting her hand on top of Jay and Cole's, then putting his on top of hers.

"You know what they say," he grinned, "ninja never quit."

...

Only Kai had made it up to the cave with her. Cole had practically gotten blown away before Nya made him stop. His opposite element was working against him. Jay had been willing to stop not long after that, okay with being beaten only by Kai. He was breathing so hard that she could practically see his face turning blue. Kai was probably granted slight immunity due to their sibling relationship.

However, he was stopped just outside the cave by a wall of wind. It didn't blow him away, but it didn't let him pass. He growled in frustration when Nya had moved through with no problem. She'd smiled and promised to be back soon.

The cave was lit by torches, and the inconsistent light flickered. The tunnels were dim, and Nya had to strain her eyes to see in front of her.

She walked for several minutes before she began to lose track of time. The passageway kept winding on and on, which was strange, since it was at the top of a mountain. But then- she felt something.

_I-I can sense it! It's close!_

There was just... Something that hadn't been there before. A pull. Her weapons were calling her.

Sure enough, just a few moments later, there was an opening. A strong light came from inside the room, and Nya walked inside.

The room was mostly bare, with a large opening in the far wall, and a pedestal that had the fans upon it. Several tapestries covered the walls, but they were faded and torn, almost like something else had been in the room.

Well, Nya did expect to face a dragon.

Slowly, she walked forward. When she was right in front of the pedestal, she stopped. She grabbed the fans, and they seemed to fit her hand perfectly. Like they were made for her.

The base of the fan had a small clear gem on it, which flashed a bright yellow. Nya looked away, squinting, as the light faded away. The gem was now yellow in color, like amber.

A roar sounded through the mine, and Nya jumped, startled. A massive dragon crawled through the hole. It had large wings, and its breath blew Nya's hair out of her face. Orange and yellow swirled together on its wings, mixing with pink on its body to resemble a sunset.

Nya froze under the steely gaze of the dragon. This was a little more intimidating that she originally thought.

She stepped forward, and put her hand out. The kunoichi of air maintained eye contact with the gorgeous beast. "I mean no harm. I want to use these for good, to help save Ninjago. Help me in my quest." Her courage was what kept her going in the face of the fierce, beautiful dragon.

The dragon regarded her with golden eyes. She moved her head so her nose was touching Nya's outstretched hand.

Nya gasped softly as her world tilted and she was whisked away. Instead of the cave, she was now on the top of the mountain. The dragon flew above her. When she looked down, she could see the ninjas below, but they didn't appear to see her.

"Where are we...?" she whispered. "What do you want from me?"

The dragon snorted, a gust of air flying out from its nostrils. Nya looked down at the fans in her hands, the carefully crafted silver weapons. The dragon must have wanted her to prove her power and status as the kunoichi of air.

She closed her eyes and concentrated. She channeled her power through the fans, hoping that they would help until she learned to do it herself.

A soft growl came from the dragon, but she knew it wasn't a cruel noise. Nya opened her eyes to see the air lazily swarming around her, like a twister.

The dragon seemed to nod, and her surroundings disappeared until she was back in the cave. Tapestries rolled up, the pedestal went down into the ground. Like the cave was cleaning itself up.

She stared into the golden eyes of her dragon. Her new friend. "I'll call you... Dusk."

Dusk roared in approval.

And with that, she mounted the dragon. It was oddly comfortable, and she felt almost at home. It opened its large wingspan, sending them out of the cave. Kai was still at the top of the mountain, so she told Dusk to pick him up on their way down.

Jay watched in awe as Nya landed. She looked more breathtaking than ever, with her uniform on her body and a smirk on her face.

The other ninja looked between Jay and Nya.

Sensei smiled. "Do you have the fans?"

She triumphantly held them up in the air. "Yeah! And this," she motioned to the dragon, "is Dusk!"

As Nya climbed off the dragon, Lloyd smirked. It scared the other ninja. Sometimes, his origins were horribly clear.

He turned to the still-frozen ninja of lightning. It was unnatural for him to be like this. Not talking. Not moving.

"I've got this."

The other ninja watched as the green ninja walked up to Jay.

WHAM!

"LLOYD! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" Jay yelped, hopping on one foot and clutching the shin Lloyd had kicked harshly.

Lloyd smiled angelically. "Oops?" The kid was a good actor, Nya had to admit.

Jay would've retaliated, but Nya was watching them with a bemused look, and he didn't want to look bad in front of her.

Cole and Kai chuckled at their teammates, and even Zane couldn't help but smile. They didn't relate to the lovesick fool. Well, not yet...

Kai thought girls were dull, aside from his sister. Most girls he met ran in terror while he and the other ninja saved Ninjago from certain doom again and again. Besides, thanks to his abrasive personality, he wasn't sure if he'd even be able to find a girl, let alone keep one.

Zane felt a mixture of feelings about the subject of love. It had always felt just out of reach for the nindroid. There were always little occurrences that reminded Zane he never truly fit in. Whether it was the fact that he didn't understand the ninjas' jokes or the fact that he always seemed to be left out, he was simply an outcast. Once the other ninja found love it would only make it harder for the nindroid.

Cole also had mixed feelings, but he was happy to enjoy the bachelor life until something else was thrown his way. The kunoichi had been a surprise for everyone, but Cole didn;t see them as potential love interests. He only wanted to treat them all fairly, as their leader. It was his job, after all. Hopefully it wouldn't prove to be too complicated.

Key word being hopefully.

Since Nya had room for one more person on Dusk, Jay opted to ride with her. This time, their positions were reversed. She rode in the front, and he had his arms wrapped around her waist. Sometimes, he would lean forward and whisper something sweet and sappy in her ear, and she would giggle and blush like a young schoolgirl with a crush. Their relationship had always been this way, however cheesy it seemed.

Nya kissed his cheek as they landed at the dojo. They got off the dragon, and headed inside. Sensei wanted to have a word with them.

As they sat around their master, Nya made sure to be by Jay. Cole and Zane sat by Lloyd on the other side of Jay, and Kai was on the other side of Nya. Sensei stood before them.

"Nya, may I see the Fans of Gales?"

She quietly stood and handed them to Sensei, who inspected them. Once he seemed satisfied, he returned them. "Very well done, Nya. However, we are running out of time. The final battle is coming soon. We must move quickly to find the location of another kunoichi. I know the location of the Katana of Darkness, and we will set out for the town beside it in the morning. Our next kunoichi might be residing in Shian Hills, which is right beside the cave called The Devil's Pit.

"It was named as such because it goes so far down only the Devil himself might reside there. Legend states there's a treasure waiting at the bottom. That's the town's legend, but they don't quite understand how close to the truth that is. We will be able to travel part of the way with the kunoichi, much like we did with Nya, but the darkness down there will persist like nothing you've ever seen before. Only the kunoichi of darkness will be able to complete the journey."

The ninja nodded along to their Sensei, but Zane had a question. "But Sensei, what if one of the other kunoichi doesn't want to be a kunoichi? We were lucky with Nya, because she had been by Kai through all of this, and she was Samurai X, but what if a kunoichi is reluctant to join us?" Zane had clearly been pondering the question.

Sensei nodded. "That is a real worry. Our best chance is to convince them is to state that this is where they belong. That it is truly their destiny to do this."

Zane nodded quietly, but his doubts were still there. Nevertheless, he let his Sensei continue.

"Be ready early. Nya, meet us outside the dojo, and call your dragon when the rest of us have arrived," he nodded, and walked out of the dojo. The ninja followed him.

Jay kissed Nya on the cheek before he left. She sighed softly, before heading to her own place. Since she had a small job of her own, she could afford a small apartment, with room for one or two more people. Not enough for every kunoichi, but hopefully they'd have a more permanent place by then.

_Oh, well. I'd better be up early. Knowing Sensei, early means right at sunrise_' She laughed at her own thoughts.

Nya closed her apartment door behind her before shedding her kunoichi suit. It wasn't as bad as Kai had made it out to be. Sure, it showed some skin, and was kind of tight, but several of her summer outfits were like that. Besides, it was everything a fighting suit should be. Her samurai suit was more durable, but this was better for what she'd be doing now. She'd need to be able to flip and run, something her samurai suit had not allowed her to do, it being so big and bulky.

After throwing on a pair of shorts and a too-small tank top, Nya crawled into bed, looking back on the exciting day she'd had. She was finally a ninja! Technically kunoichi, but a part of the team nonetheless. Sure, being the Samurai X had been awesome, but she didn't truly get the same recognition as the others. Now things would be different.

Nya sat up in her twin-sized bed and smoothed out the covers before grabbing the fans on her bedside table. She placed them in her lap and closed her eyes, practicing the feel of channeling her powers. Things were moving fast, and there wouldn't be much time to train.

Nya imagined forming a small twister in her hand, just like she had in the cave. When she felt a soft breeze on her face, she opened her eyes and saw it had worked. She grinned triumphantly, but her concentration faltered, and the twister wobbled and fizzled out.

She breathed out a sigh. She'd have to do a lot of this on her own, but she was up for the challenge. Nya had learned a long time ago that she could do anything, as long as she put her mind to it.

**So there's chapter two! Things are going to start picking up from here, and chapters are going to start getting long very soon! Please leave a review, follow, favorite, or all three! I'll be back in a week!**


	4. A Brush With Darkness

**Happy Halloween! Sorry for the absence, I've been so caught up with school! To celebrate this spooky holiday, we'll be meeting our next kunoichi - the kunoichi of darkness! This is just an introductory chapter for her, but I hope you like her! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

Nya woke up early again the next morning. They were off to find the next kunoichi! Nya briefly wondered what she would be like. Would she resemble one of the ninja? Would she resemble her element? Only time would tell...

She quickly got ready, as excitement hurried her through things that normally took several minutes. She wouldn't be the only girl anymore! Her hair was brushed out, and a small beaded hair clip kept one side of her hair out of her face.

The sister of the fire ninja put on a black shirt with a gold pattern, and blue jeans on under it. That way, she had something to wear besides her kunoichi suit. Just in case.

After pulling on a pair of tennis shoes, she rushed to the dojo, where the ninja were waiting. Sensei stepped forward. "Thank you for being very fast. You look very awake, which will pay off later. For now, we will head to Shian Hills."

All of the ninja piled on Lloyd's dragon, yawning. Sensei got on with Nya. Cole took charge of guiding the Ultra Drago, while Nya directed Dusk.. Sensei called out, "At this rate, Shian Hills is only about three hours away!"

Key words being, _at this rate._

...

Only an hour and a half into the ride, Sensei ordered them to halt. They did so, and Cole and Nya landed the dragons.

Sensei hopped off Dusk's back. With a slight smile, he said, "From here, we go on foot."

"WHAT?!" the ninja shrieked in unison. Nya sighed loudly. They acted like such babies sometimes… She went ahead and got off her dragon without questions.

"Sensei, we still have a while to go!" Kai cried. "We're only halfway there! Without the dragons, that's several hours of walking!"

"The more you complain, the longer this will seem. Come on. We need to get moving. Maybe we can get there before nightfall."

"Why do we have to walk?" Lloyd pouted and whined, refusing to move until his uncle gave an acceptable answer.

Sensei Wu turned back to see most of his students still on the dragon. Only Zane, Jay, and Nya stood beside him. He raised an eyebrow at Cole, the leader, and he quickly got down as well. Kai and Lloyd, both childishly stubborn, sat still.

"We are trying to remain unseen. Lord Garmadon may have caught on to what we are doing, and we don't want him knowing the location of any kunoichi. Two big dragons would be very conspicuous." Sensei spoke as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

Appeased by the answer, but still not liking the outcome, Kai got off the dragon, grumbling. Lloyd sat stubbornly for another minute before he realized he was completely alone, heaved a dramatic sigh, and got down.

Sensei nodded and turned around again, but Nya could have sworn she saw him hiding a smirk. "Let's go. We still have much ground to cover."

...

There were several unhappy ninja when they arrived in Shian Hills. Kai was grumbling, Zane was trying not to overheat, Jay was whining to himself, and Cole was as silent as ever. Though he did look like he was frowning. Nya's feet hurt, but she tried not to focus on how uncomfortable she was.

The little town was bustling with people, all shopping. There were many people calling out hello's to the ninja, friendly and welcoming, despite being complete strangers. The oddball team trudged down the street. They were surely a sight to see.

Five young boys in their 'pajamas,' an old man in a straw hat, and a girl dressed normally. Dragons or not, the team stood out. Finding the girl and convincing her to speak with them, might prove to be a problem.

Sensei suggested they split up into groups of two, and one group would take Lloyd to make a group of three. Sensei went with Cole, Jay was with Zane, and Kai, Lloyd, and Nya formed a group of three. Before heading their separate ways, all three groups agreed to meet back in the same spot in a few hours with any discoveries they had.

Lloyd kept grumbling about girls joining their team while they walked through the marketplace. Nya and Kai mostly ignored him. Nya did so for obvious reasons, but Kai's mind just happened to be elsewhere.

_What will the kunoichi be like? Will they just be a bunch of silly girls that we have to start at step one with, or will they be able to pick up their roles faster? What will they look like? _His thoughts were all over the place.

Kai looked around himself as he thought. It was an open air market, so all the shops were wooden stands. Most of the things people were selling were handmade, but there were plenty of other things being sold too, like food.

Children ran around, making a chaotic scene amidst all the colorful clothes and fruits. Some appeared to be playing a game of tag.

A small figure ran into Kai's side, and the ninja of fire yelped as he caught himself from falling. "Hey! Who did-"

The culprit was a young boy of about eight. His big blue eyes were frightened as he looked at the furious ninja. He took a couple steps back, looking to flee.

Kai took a deep breath to calm himself down, letting a neutral expression wash over his face. It was just a kid, and one that didn't mean any harm. He smiled gently at the young boy before asking, "Are you okay?"

The frightened boy nodded, blond hair falling into his eyes. "I'm so sorry sir, I was just-"

"Ryder, there you are!" A girl about the same age as Kai and Nya ran up, looking relieved. She began shooing the boy away, "Go now, I don't need you in my way."

The boy giggled and ran off, meeting up with a couple friends a few feet away. They were part of the group playing tag, which explained why he had been running.

"Well, sorry about that," the girl apologized.

Kai met eyes with the girl and stared. Without a doubt, she was the prettiest girl he'd ever met.

Strawberry blonde hair fell to just below her collarbone, her clear blue eyes locking straight into his own brown ones. A light scatter of freckles covered her skin. She appeared to be almost as tall as him, maybe only an inch or so shorter than his own 5'9". She wore a simple outfit of shorts and a t-shirt, showing off her long legs.

In essence, she was gorgeous.

"I'm Kai," he started. "This is my sister Nya, and our uh... friend, Lloyd."

"It's great to meet you," Nya said, holding out a hand for the girl to shake.

Lloyd grumbled something under his breath.

"I'm Alex," the girl said, shaking Nya's hand and then returning her hand to her hip.

"Isn't that a boy's name?" The words were out of Kai's mouth before he could stop them. Nya smacked her brother, turning to apologize to the girl.

Alex scoffed and stared blatantly at Kai's hair. "Isn't hair gel supposed to _tame _your hair?"

Lloyd burst out laughing, and Kai shot him a dark look. This proved ineffective on the young ninja, who only kept sniggering.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Kai gave Alex a look. She mimicked his position, probably to continue mocking him. Kai growled slightly, making a large smirk appear on Alex's face. "It's also used to _style _hair," he shot back.

Nya stepped in between the two. "Alex, is there any chance I could convince you to come with us to meet someone?"

Kai opened his mouth to protest, but his sister gave him a look. He promptly shut his mouth.

The girl looked confused for a moment. "I ... I guess that would be okay..." she said hesitantly.

"It's nothing to worry about," Nya assured her. "I promise we're perfectly trustworthy people. Well, except for Kai."

"Hey!" Kai protested, but Nya giggled, and Alex smirked.

"Alright," Alex agreed. "I'll come with you."

Kai walked with Lloyd as the two girls walked together, Nya already chatting away. Alex wasn't as talkative, but she seemed comfortable enough. For the most part, Lloyd himself was silent, except for one moment...

"How many girls did Sensei say there were?" He asked, frowning up at Kai.

"Five."

"Gross."

...

Garmadon stiffened as he felt a small shift in the balance. _That must mean..._ He growled, hurling a cup across the room. Those ninja were probably at it again. He wasn't surprised, however, just vaguely annoyed.

They were little pests, and he kept trying to stomp on them, but failed every time.

The fire ninja, Kai, was particularly annoying. He always seemed to be ready to attack him, and Garmadon felt the same way. He was, overall, a pest.

Garmadon had sent a few snakes into the town of Shian Hills to keep an eye out for the ninja or the kunoichi. None had come back so far, which could either be good or bad.

The fools had either found the girl and were trying to bring her back, or someone else had snatched her from them… Wu.

Whatever the case, Garmadon doubted he could track down the snakes in time to make a difference. It was only the first kunoichi anyway, so surely he'd be able to grab one of the others.

Kidnapping wasn't beneath the Dark Lord.

o~O~o

Alex stared at the guests she'd brought into her home. Five ninja, a girl, and an old man. Everyone had heard of the ninja, of course, but they weren't highly looked upon since the Great Devourer incident.

The old man stepped forward to introduce everyone. He wore a funny looking straw hat, and had a long grey beard. "I am Sensei Wu, and these are my students.

"You've already met Kai, the ninja of Fire." Of course Alex couldn't forget him. The undeniably attractive man with a quick temper, fairly similar to her own,actually. The spiky hair that she'd made fun of, was a very good look on him, she had to admit. He had tan skin and amber eyes. There was a notch in his right eyebrow. Red suited him well.

"This is Cole, the leader of the ninja and the ninja of Earth." Another attractive man, this one with ebony black hair swept across his forehead. His skin was light, and all the black of his suit contrasted with that. He had caterpillar-like eyebrows, as thick and as dark as his hair. It was almost comical, actually. His eyes were the color of an emerald, dark and rich.

"Zane is the ninja of ice." Just as Cole wore all black, this ninja was wearing all white. Zane had short platinum blonde hair, and his skin was an unearthly porcelain. His eyes were a crystal blue. He carried a sort of ethereal beauty.

"Jay is the ninja of lightning." The next one had more of a boyish charm, with his short red-brown hair and blue eyes. Unlike Zane's light eyes, Jay's were more of a deep blue. Like a stormy sky. He had a scar cutting through his right eyebrow. His stance next to Nya showed that he was quite taken by the girl.

"This is Lloyd, the green ninja. He can harness all four of the ninjas' powers, as well as his own power of creation." Lloyd was the kid in green from earlier. He seemed to be a normal kid for his 12 years of age, loving candy and disliking girls. His blond hair was cut fairly short, with bangs in front. His eyes were apple green.

"And of course, this is my latest student, Nya. She is the kunoichi of Air, and Kai's sister." Nya and her brother looked vaguely similar, but more in the structure of their faces than their coloring. Nya looked more Japanese, with her short black hair and dark eyes. Kai was something else, but Alex couldn't quite put her finger on what.

Whatever the case, this Sensei guy had a team of very attractive people. Cole was undeniably hot, despite the eyebrows, Zane was practically an angel in his beauty, Jay had a boy-next-door kind of attractiveness, and Kai kinda had the bad-boy hotness with his messy hair and an ever-present smirk. Lloyd was a kid, a cute kid with a need for a better haircut, but still a kid. Nya was very pretty as well, but Alex was quite straight and wasn't attracted to her like she was to the guys.

"I'm Alex," she began, noticing that everyone was looking at her now. She was uncomfortable with the attention, but decided to roll with it anyway. She felt strangely at home with these people. "This is my home, where I've lived for almost seventeen years. I have a younger brother, Ryder, and my parents are Jessica and Lucas Adair."

Sensei sat down on a chair by her fireplace, which prompted everyone else to sit as well. Jay and Nya were on the same couch as her, and the other three boys were on the couch perpendicular to the one she was on.

"If I may ask, _where _is your family?" Sensei asked.

Alex thought he was oddly formal. "Well my parents are at work, and my brother is probably still goofing off in the marketplace. I'm just hoping he doesn't run into anyone else," she finished this with a grin aimed at Kai.

The old man nodded, long beard swaying. His straw hat shadowed his face. "May we stay for dinner tonight, Alex? I believe we have much to discuss."

The girl in question frowned. "I don't really know you all. I'm trying to be hospitable, but I'm going to have to ask you to explain why you're here and what you want from me." She was suddenly very aware that she was alone with them. A feeling of uncomfort grew.

Sensei Wu put up a hand to silence her, which made her temper flare. He was trying to control her in her own home! "I understand your frustration. I was hoping to speak to your parents at the same time, but this will work as well. Please, sit," he motioned to the couch.

Reluctantly, Alex sank back down, glaring at her hands. She could feel Nya giving her a sympathetic look, but she didn't want pity. She wanted answers.

"You are familiar with the ninja?" Sensei began, and continued when Alex nodded in affirmation. "Well, Nya here is a kunoichi, or female ninja."

"You've already said this," Alex interrupted. "She's the kunoichi of air. What's your point?"

Sensei smiled, a twinkle in his eye. "I was making it, my dear. Just as there are five ninja, there are five kunoichi. Nya is the first," he looked right into Alex's eyes before continuing, "and you are the second."

Alex scoffed, "I'm not a ninja," she glared at Zane when he tried to speak up, "or kunoichi, for that matter."

"You can always come with us and find out," Nya offered from beside her.

Alex surveyed the room before sighing. "Just what is my element, exactly?"

"Darkness," Sensei Wu responded. "A powerful weapon, when channeled by someone who can control it, instead of letting it control them."

Alex leaned back on the couch, looking up at the ceiling. "If you can somehow convince my parents that this is a good idea, then I'll go with you," she sighed. The whole thing sounded crazy, but if her parents could be convinced, then she'd play along. Living in the same small town for seventeen years got dull after a while, and Alex wanted more adventure in her life. Ninjago was large. She'd always wanted to explore it more.

A few of the ninjas hid triumphant smiles as she looked back at them. "But why am I darkness? Doesn't that make me evil?"

Sensei Wu shook his head, and the whole room turned their attention to him. "Dark does not mean evil. Evil is often associated with darkness, but unless you choose to go down that path, you will exhibit other factors of darkness. You seem to have a temper, which could be associated with the darker side of your element. But on the other hand, you don't want to command the attention of the room, preferring to hide in the shadows."

Alex blinked at his early assessment of her personality. He was good at observing people and analyzing them. "If I may… what about the rest of them?"

The older man knew what she meant, of course. She wasn't as observant as him, but she could tell he was rather intuitive.

Sensei looked around the room before beginning, "Nya is the first of the kunoichi. Like the element of air, she can be both a gentle breeze and a strong gust of wind. Powerful when she needs to be, and reserved other times. Kai, her brother, is the element of fire. He also has a temper, but his is more violent, and he has a loud personality like his own heated element. Cole is the leader of the ninja, and his element is earth. He's strong and solid like the ground, and it's rare for him to lose him temper, but it's deadly when he does. Jay is the ninja of lightning, and he's quick-witted and fast like his element-" he was cut off by Kai.

"Also, he talks too much, so we gave him the nickname 'mouth of lightning,'" he joked, and the rest of the group laughed. He quieted when Sensei shot him a look.

Sensei cleared his throat. "Zane is the ninja of ice, and he's a bit more uptight than the others, resembling the frozen nature of his element," the older man said. "But he's very talented at doing different tasks the other ninja find difficult, such as cooking, putting an emphasis on the more delicate role ice can play," Sensei finished, softening the harsh blow he'd begun with.

Alex looked over at Zane, who hid the frown scarring his features. He seemed to be a rather lovely person, but Sensei was right - he needed to relax.

Before she could ask about Lloyd, the door opened, and the rest of her family came in, Ryder leading the way. They all stopped when they saw that Alex had guests.

Sensei Wu stood up. "Would it be alright if we stayed for dinner?"

Alex's mother, Jessica, nodded slowly. Her eyes were confused, but she overcame it quickly.

"We'll put some extra things in the oven for all of you," She refrained from asking why there were so many strange people in her living room.

Sensei Wu smiled. "One of my students, Zane, would be willing to help, since I know we are a large group that you were not expecting." Zane stood up and nodded, going over to Jessica. "I have something I'd like to discuss with you at dinner."

Zane and Mrs. Adair headed into the kitchen to prepare food, and Alex sat on the couch, surrounded by who might become her new teammates, wondering just what she had gotten herself into.

**Ooh, a dinner with the family! Does this mean good things? You'll have to find out in the next chapter!**

**Go get a sugar high from all that candy tonight, but don't forget to leave a review for me! Happy Halloween guys, and I'll see you next time!**


	5. As Night Falls

**Hey y'all, I'm a little early here! I've got a big final on Monday, so I decided to update today instead of forgetting to post on Sunday! **

**I've been on a big writing kick the past week or so, and I'm in the middle of writing chapter 11 right now! I'm excited to show you guys the next several chapters, but for now we're going to focus on Alex and what's up with her. **

**Will she say yes? Will her parents say yes? What's going to happen? You'll have to read and see! Go ahead!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

Alex found herself sitting at a table full of food, surrounded by more people than had ever been in her house before. She found sat between Sensei Wu and Nya, with her parents across the table, Ryder at their side. The ninja were all chowing down, and Alex had a terrifying vision of what her brother would look like in a few years as he became a teenage gremlin.

She shuddered and turned back to her food. Her mom and Zane had whipped up a potato soup, which was easy to make a lot of and was more delicious than normal - probably due to Zane's interference. Her mother was a good cook, but she often hesitated when asked to stray from the recipe. It appeared Zane had the natural instinct to add some flair. Alex had to admit it was one of the best meals she'd ever had.

They were all chatting quietly until her father finished and put down his fork. Lucas Adair breathed out a sigh, then rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers. The rest of the table quieted down, turning to look at him.

"Alexandra…" he began quietly, using her full name. She knew it wasn't the time to protest his use of it, and opted to stay quiet as he sorted out what he was going to say.

Sensei Wu opened his mouth to speak first. "Mr. Adair, I know this must be very confusing-"

Her father scoffed. "Very confusing doesn't begin to describe it. What are the disgraced ninja doing in my home? What are you trying to drag my daughter into?"

Alex frowned at that. She wasn't getting dragged into anything! She was under the impression that everything would be _her _decision in the end. But, of course, she was still "too young" according to her parents.

The older man waited for her father to finish instead of interrupting him. "Mr. Adair, we do believe that your daughter is destined to join our team. Nya," he gestured to the lovely Japanese girl next to him, "is the first of the kunoichi. They are female ninja that will work together with the ninja to save Ninjago."

Slightly stunned, Mr. Adair looked at his wife. Mrs. Adair put a sympathetic hand on her husband's arm. She said, "Why does Ninjago need saving? The Great Devourer was defeated, so why do you need Alexandra now?" Her tone was soft and pleading; she didn't want her child to leave.

"The Great Devourer was a major evil that was defeated, yes, but Lord Garmadon stole the ninjas' weapons. This has given him more power. I fear that he will abuse it soon," Sensei Wu explained. Alex's parents gaped, unfamiliar with the threat of the golden weapons. Sensei continued on. "He will continue to grow stronger, and the ninja need help. They've always needed help, but now is their darkest hour. The kunoichi will rise with them, ensuring the survival of Ninjago."

Mr. Adair sighed at the argument Wu put up. "Sir, you don't have children, so I don't expect you to understand, but Alexandra here is my oldest. Do you really expect me to let her go with you, someone I've only just met?" His hand moved to rub his temple.

Alex was surprised by her father's protectiveness. She'd never heard him like this before. "Dad?" she said quietly.

He looked up at his daughter. "What is it?"

Alex took in a deep breath. "I think I want to go with them," she announced.

Feeling the eyes of everyone at the table, she began to fidget with her fingers under the table.

Nya grinned in triumph. If it all went well, she'd have a new friend and team member!

Zane, Cole, and Jay were all interested to see how having a new girl on the team would play out.

Lloyd rolled his eyes and grabbed another roll, shoving it in his mouth. He didn't need any girls on his team. An anger deep down inside of him flared. He knew what girls were _really _like.

Kai found himself mulling over what was happening. Nya would poke fun at him if she knew he was thinking instead of just acting. He was known to jump straight into action, but this time he wasn't.

Clearing his throat, Kai called the attention from everyone at the table to him.

"Mr. Adair, we've all been through a lot together. Whatever happens, we'll give your daughter the best training she could receive, and we'll all protect her from anything that comes our way. She'll be able to travel all over Ninjago with some of the best company," he ended with a joke. He made direct eye contact with Alex, and he nodded at her. Alex gave him a shy half smile in return.

Her father looked at her mother, and the two shared a secretive, silent conversation. The whole table was quiet as Alex's parents came to a conclusion.

This time, it was Mrs. Adair that spoke up. Her voice had a soft lift as she spoke, "We'd like the night to talk things over. You," she gestured to Nya, "can stay with Alex for the night, but the rest of you need to find somewhere else. There's an inn in the middle of town that has rooms for low rates," she offered kindly, looking to Wu.

Sensei bowed his head to her in gratefulness. "I'm sure Nya would love to take you up on that offer. The rest of us will shack up for the night and then meet you back here in the morning."

Alex's parents smiled and nodded, pleased with the agreement they had come to. Dinner wrapped up soon after. All of the boys headed out, leaving only Nya behind with the Adairs.

"Ryder, why don't we go upstairs and get ready for bed?" Mrs. Adair suggested quietly, and the younger boy nodded. The two went upstairs, Mr. Adair lingering for a few moments longer.

"Alexandra… just know we're here for you no matter what, okay?" he said quietly, more unsure than she'd ever heard him before.

Taking a few steps forward, she flung her arms around his neck. Her father was only a few inches taller than her, being around 5'11". His arms wound around her waist, squeezing tightly before letting go.

Without another word, he went upstairs after his wife and younger child. Alex turned back to Nya, who had silently watched the family dynamic play out before her. "Wanna go upstairs?" Alex offered to Nya.

Nya grinned brightly as they began walking up the stairs. "That'd be great. I didn't really bring a change of clothes, though. I figured we would be done earlier."

"Done with what?" Alex asked curiously. She was still confused as to how they'd managed to find her.

Nya reached the top of the stairs and paused. She could hear Alex's parents with Ryder near the end of the hall, but she wasn't sure which room was Alex's. Alex slipped past her and walked into the room on the left.

The room wasn't messy, but it wasn't clean either. Things were corralled in bins and boxes on shelves, but a few objects still lay on the floor around the room. A chair in the corner had a pile of clothes on it - all clean and folded, but not put away.

Alex began clearing a space on the floor. Nya decided to fill the space with an answer. "We knew the next kunoichi would be in this area, since The Devil's Pit is right next to Shian Hills."

There was a thud as Alex sat down next to her bed. The shocked look displayed on her face showed that wasn't what she meant to do. Nya giggled, and Alex laughed with her. "Sorry, I'm a little clumsy sometimes," Alex said. "Five years of gymnastics and I can touch my toes and do flips, but trying to get a trundle bed out can still knock me over." While she was still on the ground, she grabbed the edge of the trundle bed and pulled it out.

She stood up and clapped her hands together. "I have several extra pillows, but the sheets on the bed are clean, I swear. If you need clothes, I'm taller than you, but otherwise we're probably the same size."

Nya smiled and thanked her. "Got any pajamas?"

Alex tossed a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt at Nya. "You can keep them if you want," she offered. "I have a feeling if this all works out, we'll be sharing a lot in the future."

They shared a laugh over that, and they both changed into their pajamas. Nya's were a little long, but she didn't mind. Alex was wore a green set of shorts and a shirt with pink embroidery. She grabbed a couple of pillows from her closet and threw them on Nya's bed before climbing onto hers. She hugged a pillow to her chest.

Alex waited as Nya climbed into bed. "How about, to get to know each other and what I'm getting into? We can trade off asking questions." Alex said.

Nya nodded. "You can start."

"Tell me about your team. The ninja, I mean," Alex blurted out immediately, then blushed slightly.

"Technically, that's not a question," Nya teased gently, testing to see how well Alex dealt with that. If she was going to help lead the kunoichi, she wanted to know as much as she could about each girl.

Her new friend rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha, very funny," she stated dryly. "In that case, can you tell me about Sensei Wu?"

And, of course, Nya did. "He's a little… odd sometimes, but he's really smart and knows what he's doing. He'll know your strengths and weaknesses better than you do, so he's the best person to train you," Nya said before hesitating. Should she tell Alex about the familial relationship between him, Lord Garmadon, and Lloyd? She decided to hold off a little longer. "He loves tea and doesn't pick favorites. Equality is something he believes in strongly, and he always sees the good in people." _Even if they're his evil brother, _Nya finished silently.

"What's your favorite color?" Nya asked, as her first question. She figured she'd start off basic.

Alex didn't hesitate before answering. "Green. I like red too, but it wouldn't go well with my hair. So green it is," she said. "What's the dynamic between all the ninja like?"

Nya leaned back against a pillow to think. "Well, Cole is the leader. He's stronger and more focused than the rest of the ninja, barring Zane. They all respect him, whether they admit to it or not. Zane has good advice, and they'll listen to what he says as well, but he's a robot, so he has a few interesting quirks. He's the best cook, Cole is the worst. Don't let Cole ever make anything for you," Nya warned. She shuddered just thinking about his chowder.

Alex thought about the attractive ninja with dark hair. "Is it really that bad?" He seemed like he was good at everything.

"Worse than anything you're imagining." Nya paused before continuing on, "Jay is the talkative one. If you're ever feeling lonely and just need someone to talk to, he's perfect for that. He's the only one that isn't single, too," Nya smiled. "He's always got a joke ready to make you feel better."

Alex noticed the love-struck look on Nya's face. "Let me guess, you're the one dating him?" She phrased it like a question, but she already knew the answer.

"That's right," Nya affirmed her theory. "We're, ah… in a weird position right now, where we like each other but don't exactly know what's happening in the relationship." She bit her lip, thinking for a moment.

"Anyway, that's Jay. A sweetheart that can talk your ear off and make you groan at all his jokes. Kai is my brother. He's hotheaded and fiercely protective, which often go hand in hand. He's loyal until the end, and the person I'd always choose to have my back." Nya thought back to when she found out she was a kunoichi. Kai had exploded, but only because he didn't want her to get hurt. Being a kunoichi meant she wouldn't have a giant suit protecting her anymore.

_The fire ninja sure is as hot as his element, _Alex thought to herself. He was certainly the ninja she found most attractive, but it was hard to deny the fact that all of them were.

Nya moved on to the last ninja. "Lloyd is the green ninja, so he's technically included in this list. He's still a kid though, so he acts like one a lot. He's immature, but a lot of that comes from his rough childhood." At that, she hesitated before continuing. "His dad… is Lord Garmadon."

Alex gasped. The sweet kid was the son of Lord Garmadon? "No way!"

Nya modded gravely. "When the time comes, he will have to face his father in battle."

"But he's just a kid!" Alex protested, her mind whirling. This was just like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader… except in this scenario, Luke Skywalker was _twelve!_

"He does have a lot to learn," Nya admitted, thinking back to how recently he'd found out his fate. "But he's really a good kid, just watch your back. He loves playing pranks, and right now he's not a big fan of girls." She dropped her voice to a whisper, "he still thinks we have cooties."

Unable to hide her amusement, Alex burst out laughing. "He sounds like a funny kid."

Nya grinned. "He sure is. Now, it's my turn for a question. What's your favorite thing to do?"

"Read," Alex answered. "I usually do some of my stretches while I'm reading, it helps me relax."

"Just how flexible _are _you?" Nya wondered. Nya was fairly flexible, and being a kunoichi would help her learn how to do more, but she wasn't anything amazing.

Alex hopped out of bed and began doing light stretches to warm up so she didn't hurt herself. "Well, I was really inflexible as a kid, so I decided to work hard at stretching to fix that. Now, I'm the most flexible one in my family!" She bent over to touch her toes, slowly reaching down further until her hands were pressed against the ground.

That was impressive to Nya. "That's really good! And you have such long legs, too."

"And arms," Alex said, showing them off. "It took some extra work because of that, but I managed to do it." Alex sat down on the floor and began to stretch some more. "What's _your _favorite color?"

"Well, my _favorite _color is blue. It's what first connected me with Jay, so it's held a special place in my heart ever since. But my other favorite is yellow, like my suit," Nya responded. Blue clearly was her favorite, but she also had a penchant for the color yellow.

"Your suit?" Alex asked from the floor.

Nya suddenly remembered that Alex didn't have hers yet. "Yeah. I'll see if I can show you real quick, but don't make fun of me if I look stupid."

She got out of bed, standing over to the side where she wouldn't trip on anything. Nya remembered when the boys had learned Spinjitzu. They'd all said it was like the training course when you first learned it, and from there it came naturally.

Nya had gone through the training course before. Sensei had let her when the boys were gone, and she was better at it than Kai. She pictured it in front of her, and began to move.

Alex stared at Nya, wrinkling her brow. It looked strange… but then her jaw dropped open. Nya was surrounded by a tornado, and a big one at that! It soon disappeared, leaving her in an orange and yellow suit.

The first thing Nya saw when she stopped was Alex's shocked expression. Then, she looked down at herself. A grin almost split her face in half as she realized she was in her suit!

She modeled it for Alex, who got up off the ground to check it out.

"Wow… this is your suit? Does that mean I have one?" Alex asked, admiring Nya's outfit.

Nya nodded proudly. "My element is air, so my colors are yellow and orange. Yours is going to be darkness, so I'd imagine your colors to be darker. Cole is black, so you might be a dark grey, if I had to guess."

"Will ours be identical like the ninjas' are?" Alex wondered. "Or will we each have unique ones?"

"It's hard to tell," Nya shrugged. "If your parents let you come with us, you'll find out yours tomorrow." _Please let them say yes, _Nya thought to herself. She really wanted Alex to come with them.

"What happens tomorrow?" Alex asked. She sat back down on the ground and began to move into another flexible position, soon sliding into the full splits.

Nya applauded quietly, impressed by her skills. "We'll go get your weapon."

Alex carefully stood and turned off the light. "My weapon?" She asked as she got into her own bed. Only a small lamp was still lit between the beds.

Nya brought out her fans, sending a gust of wind toward Alex. Alex laughed delightedly as her hair blew back in the wind that came seemingly out of nowhere.

"What kind of weapon is that?" Alex asked.

"They're bladed fans," Nya said, showing them off in the dim lamplight. The silver metal gleamed, as did the yellow gems. "They help me control my power, and yours will do the same for you."

She put them back in her belt and did Spinjitzu to get back into her pajamas. She crawled into her bed.

Alex flicked off the lamp. "Goodnight, Nya. I hope I can go with you."

Nya smiled into the dark room. "Goodnight, Alex. I hope you can too."

…

A few blocks away, five ninja and one Sensei were squeezed into a hotel room. Sensei Wu was on the couch, resting peacefully.

"Ow!" Jay hissed. "Lloyd kicked me again!"

"Shut up," two ninja groaned in unison. Kai and Cole were in one bed trying to sleep, but Cole was sweating because of Kai's natural body heat.

Zane, Lloyd, and Jay were in the other bed. Unbeknownst to either of them, Lloyd wasn't asleep yet. He'd gotten rather good at faking it at Darkley's.

Lloyd was on the outside of the bed, away from Zane's unnaturally cool body temperature. After kicking Jay, he'd rolled to face the wall. The young boy's thoughts whirled as he thought about the events of the day. _More girls, _he thought. _I hope this doesn't end up working out._

The young boy grimaced at the thought of having _four _girls on their team. _Maybe they won't be that bad, _a part of him hoped. But Lloyd Garmadon knew the danger of hoping. He knew they'd be awful. At least Jay was the only infatuated ninja though. The rest seemed to be on his side.

Speaking of Jay, he'd already passed out, Lloyd's kicking incident forgotten.

Zane was on the other side of Jay, positioned on his back as he stared at the ceiling. He was on top of the covers, not needing them. His central cooling system kept him at the right temperature at all times.

There was a faint whirring from his chest as his systems began to power down for the night. His internal alarm would wake him early the next morning, just like it did every other day when he cooked for the ninja. Very rarely, Cole would beat him to the punch. On those days, Zane was not jealous of his team's more highly-functioning taste buds.

_Being human… what would that be like? _He wondered to himself. It was his last thought as he drifted off.

Cole was on his side, facing away from Kai. He was also on top of the covers - the guy was like a personal heater! But it was either this or be stuck with Lloyd and the chatterbox. So, in a way, it was worth it.

He found himself to be neutral on the idea of girls joining their team. Unless they became a distraction, of course. Jay was still learning to not worry about Nya, but he also knew she could handle herself. Cole admired Nya for her strength.

The others wouldn't pose a problem, though. Zane wasn't human, Kai was a bit of an interesting character, and Lloyd was still a child that thought cooties were a thing that girls had. Cole himself hadn't found anyone that had caught his eye in a _long _time.

Sighing, he decided to close his eyes and get some rest. They would need all the sleep they could get in these upcoming days.

Kai was on his side, eyes closed but not asleep. Alex's face kept flashing in his mind, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of that image of her teasing him when they first met.

_I just want to get to know her, _he told himself. _I wonder if she's ever seen Ninjago City…_

Before he could fall asleep, a loud snore came from the other bed, quickly followed by a yelp as Lloyd kicked Jay again. Kai took in a deep breath. Yelling at them to shut up wouldn't do any good…

Kai finally fell asleep, still trying to keep his mind off of Alex.

**Hmmm, so we've got some feelings here. No weapon yet, but some insight on several characters throughout the chapter. Feel free to leave a review, tell me your predictions, your opinion... Let me know what you think! Next time I update, I'll be on break! See you then!**


	6. The Devil's Pit

**Hey again! I'm back with just over 4,000 words this chapter. A lot is about to happen! In case the title didn't totally give it away, Alex is going to go after her weapon this chapter! Nya had to face some challenges when she got her fans, so what's in store for Alex and the rest of the gang as they find her katana?**

**Thanks to pokemonking0924 for favoriting this story! I really appreciate all the love you guys are giving me, so don't be shy!**

**Disclaimer: Alas, Ninjago is not mine.**

Alex dragged herself out of bed, leaving her blankets a jumbled mess. Yawning as she stretched, she stumbled toward her walk-in closet. The edge of her foot caught something, and she almost fell.

Squinting, she saw a bed with a girl in it. Nya! She'd almost forgotten the events of yesterday.

She went into her closet and closed the door behind her. Alex sent a quick prayer to whoever was listening before grabbing her suitcase and beginning to put outfits in it.

Before long, she had filled up the suitcase and exchanged her pajamas for a new outfit. Today, she was in black track shorts and a T-shirt.

Alex left her suitcase in the closet, since her parents hadn't confirmed yet that she could go with the ninja. She couldn't quite put her finger on why she was so willing to go. So she blamed it on the books she'd read about adventures and far-off places. She'd never even been to Ninjago City! Alex wanted to go see the world, and this was her opportunity to do so.

When she stepped out of the closet, Nya was sitting up in her bed. "Good morning," she mumbled.

"Morning" Alex replied, still needing her morning coffee. "It'll be _good _when I hear a positive response from my parents. So, I'm going downstairs. Feel free to wear anything from my closet."

Without waiting for a response from Nya, Alex went downstairs and found herself to be the first one up. With a sigh, she grabbed a carton of eggs from the fridge, deciding to make breakfast.

Alex turned on the stovetop, checking her phone quickly for the time. Just after seven… her parents would be up soon.

She cracked the eggs and poured them in a pan, stirring them as they cooked. She wasn't a talented chef or anything, but if there was a recipe for her to follow, Alex could make it.

Nya came downstairs as the eggs finished cooking. Alex shoveled some on plates for the two of them, turning off the stovetop and leaving some for her parents.

Alex put some pepper on her eggs before sitting down beside Nya. "Nice outfit," she commented, recognizing it as one she'd hardly worn.

Nya was dressed in a pair of white shorts with floral detailing that were a bit small for Alex's taste, but they fit well on Nya, since the Japanese girl didn't have terribly long legs. A simple pink tank top finished framed her upper body.

"Thank you," Nya smiled. "Are your parents up yet?"

Alex frowned. "I haven't seen- Hi, Mom! Hi, Dad!" She got up to hug each of her parents. "I left some eggs on the stove for you."

"And you only put pepper on your eggs, right?" Mr. Adair teased, grabbing plates for him and his wife.

Alex's face was blank as she said, "I will not kill you with pepper today."

"I guess today _is _all you can promise to us," her mother said quietly. Mrs. Adair grabbed her plate from her husband and sat down across from Nya.

Alex could hardly breathe. "Does that mean…?"

"What's going on?" A sleepy voice could be heard in the entryway to the kitchen. Ryder stood there, still in his pajamas and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Mr. Adair had just set his plate down across from Alex. "Alex made eggs. You can sit here."

Ryder slumped into the seat beside him mom and began to pick at the eggs in front of him. "Mom, is Alex going to leave us?"

After a moment of hesitation, Mrs Adair responded to her son. "Yes, honey," she said with a sad smile. "She's been offered the chance to go follow her destiny and save Ninjago, and your father and I can't deny her that opportunity."

Mr. Adair came and sat down at the end of the table, having gotten another plate for the last of the eggs. "Alexandra, we trust that you will still keep in contact with us so we know how you're doing. But if they need you today, you can go as soon as you're packed."

With a sheepish grin, Alex said, "I already packed most of my stuff."

Nya had been eating quietly for a while. She set down her fork. "You'll be sharing an apartment with me. The boys have their own space, and I have mine. It's not very big, but there's not five of us yet."

_Yet?,_ Alex wondered. _How many more girls will I have to be friends with before this is all over? I can stand Nya, but what if someone is a total witch?_

But instead of voicing her thoughts, she said, "So what you're saying is, I don't have to deal with any stupid boys yet?"

Nya shook her head in exasperation. "Well, they'll be with us to get your weapon and to help train you, but no, you won't be living with them."

"Is living with them a possibility?" Mr. Adair piped up. Ever the protective father, he wanted to make sure his daughter didn't get too… _close _with any of the ninja.

"Even if we end up living in the same residence, we have separate boy and girl rooms," Nya assured him. "And besides, Sensei is pretty strict on that sort of thing."

Alex grinned, "Know that from personal experience?" She could clearly see the attraction between Nya and the talkative blue ninja.

Nya's face reddened. "Ah, we haven't really gone out much yet," she defended herself. Maybe they could set up a date when they got back to Ninjago City…

Mr. Adair cleared his throat. When everyone looked at him, he said, "Will the ninja and Sensei Wu come to pick you up?"

Alex was about to say she wasn't sure when Nya piped up, "I've texted them. Whoever wakes up first will likely come with Sensei to get us."

"Can I go say goodbye to Jessica and Laney?" Alex asked quietly. "I know I won't see them for a long time."

She could've sworn she saw Mrs. Adair wipe a tear away. "As long as you come back before you leave, that should be fine."

Nya didn't want to interrupt what would likely be a sad goodbye between three best friends. "If it's alright with you, I'll go take a shower." She aimed the statement toward Mr. and Mrs. Adair, making sure they didn't have an issue with it.

The next hour passed quickly as Alex let her friends know what was going on. They were reluctant to see her leave, but happy that she had such a wonderful opportunity.

"Promise you'll text us every day," Laney said. Laney was her _best _friend from birth, and Alex would miss her most of all.

Jessica chimed in, "And send us pictures of everything you see!"

"And every_one _you see," Laney said with a coy wink. "You know those ninjas are cute just as much as I do."

Alex fought back a blush, but it came anyway. Laney was a fan of Cole, and Jessica liked Zane. They'd never met the ninja, of course, but they'd shown up often enough on TV to get some fans of their own.

"I promise I'll keep in touch and send pictures."

One last tear-filled hug and she was gone. Back to her own house, where she found Kai, Zane, and Sensei Wu waiting outside.

"Good morning, Alexandra," Zane greeted her. "I trust you slept well?"

"Please, call me Alex," she insisted. She was still mad that her dad kept using her real name around guests. "And I slept well, Zane, thank you for asking. How was your night?"

Kai frowned, "Jay snores and Lloyd kept kicking him, which make him wake up and yell. It sucked and I woke up early so I could get out of there before I killed them." He was clearly irritated, and Alex got the impression that he was _not _a morning person.

Alex walked past them and opened her door so they could all go inside. "Well, I'm pretty sure murder is still frowned upon here, so it's a good thing you did."

Sensei and the two ninja filed in after her. Nya was waiting, having put back on the same outfit she'd been wearing that morning. She had gotten Alex's suitcase, too.

Nya's eyes immediately looked for Jay, and noticed he was not there. "Where's Jay - the others, I mean," she corrected herself. Cole and Lloyd weren't there either.

Kai rolled his eyes. "Cole is back babysitting them, Jay snores so Lloyd kept kicking him. Neither of them got much sleep." 'Babies…' he thought to himself.

Mr. Adair appeared from the kitchen area. "Good morning, Mr. Wu. Do you intend to leave soon?"

Sensei Wu nodded his head in response. "Yes, we need to head to The Devil's Pit as soon as we can. That's where the Katana of Darkness lies."

Alex and her father both gasped, having heard unpleasant legends about the place. "It's pitch black down there!" Alex cried, remembering everything she had heard. "People have gone crazy from being there. They hallucinate and see their worst nightmares." Suddenly, Alex wasn't so keen on being a kunoichi.

"It is built so only the kunoichi of darkness can reach the treasure - your silver weapon," Sensei assured her.

"Mine was at the top of a mountain," Nya said. "I was the only one that could get into the cave at the top because the wind kept everyone else away. The katana will recognize you as the kunoichi of darkness and let you pass unharmed."

That made Alex feel slightly better. Still, she turned and said farewell to her parents and her brother before grabbing her suitcase and heading out the door, taking her first step into her new life as a kunoichi.

They met up with the other three ninja later. Cole looked very put out, Lloyd wouldn't look up from the ground, and Jay had a giant grin on his face when he saw Nya. The couple embraced, and he whispered something in Nya's ear that made her giggle. Alex looked away from the private moment, her heart longing for a relationship like that of her own. Her eyes flicked over to Kai, who stood to her left. _Maybe… no, Alex_! she chided herself. _You have to focus on being a kunoichi! There's no room for romance here._

Besides, Alex knew what a broken heart felt like. And she didn't ever want to feel that pain again…

"Alex," Kai said beside her.

She looked up, startled. "What?"

Everyone was looking at her, and she realized she had spaced out. "Sorry. What is it?"

Sensei smiled at her. "It is time for you to get your suit. NINJA-GO!"

He did Spinjitzu and she spun with him. For a moment, she was very dizzy from the mini tornado. When her head cleared, she looked down at herself.

Her suit was mostly dark grey. It also happened to be a dress. It was long sleeved, the end of each sleeve wrapping around her middle finger, almost like a glove. There was a triangle-shaped keyhole on her chest to help with the breathability.

She had a blood red sheath on her back for her future weapon. A red belt gave the suit shape. It all stopped halfway down her thighs, with slits up the sides to give her legs more space when she fought. She had red boots like Nya's that came up just below where her dress stopped. A red-trimmed grey cloth covered her nose and mouth. Her hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail, completely getting her hair out of her face.

The rest of the ninja and Nya spun into their outfits as well. Alex slipped the cloth off her face so she could speak, even though the material was light enough.

The ninja all stared at the newest member of their team. Nya couldn't help but notice that Alex's uniform was different from hers.

"Sensei, why are mine and Nya's different?" Alex asked, also having noticed this fact.

"Unlike the ninja's suits, yours are more suited for _you _and your elements. Darkness is known for covering things up, so Alex has a long sleeved dress. Air is more free, so your shorts help you move. Certain elements will stay the same, like the boots and mask," Sensei said to answer the girls' questions.

Kai was speechless. He couldn't believe how… how great Alex looked. Refusing to let his attraction show, he said, "But she's wearing red. That's _my _color."

Alex was in his face instantly. "It's called an accent color, Kai. Unless you're blind, you'd see my actual suit color is grey, which is _not _'your color'," she used air quotes to mock him.

Kai's anger flared, and Sensei stepped between the two before blood could be shed.

"Kai, one of the kunoichi is dark green. She is not stealing Lloyd's color, that's just what her color is," Sensei said to soothe the situation.

"Apologize, Kai," Nya chided him.

He sighed, regretting his words. "Sorry, Alex."

She gave him a small smile in return before turning back to Sensei Wu. "Where are we?" she asked.

"We're just outside the entrance to the cave," Sensei explained. "Anyone who wants to go is welcome, but I would not be upset by anyone who wants to stay out. This kind of darkness can prey on your worst secrets and memories, bending and twisting them against you.

"Alex, even you might be affected by it," Sensei said apologetically. "You'll be able to find your way to the katana, but the darkness might still try to trick you. Ultimately, you must be strong. The darkness must bow to _you_. You must not let it control you. This is your first test as a kunoichi."

Alex gulped. She was worried now. What if she couldn't do it?

Nya stepped forward. "I'll go with her," she said, and grabbed Alex's hand. "We girls need to stick together," she grinned.

Alex couldn't help but grin back. It seemed Nya was on her side.

Kai came up on her other side. "I'll go, too. Maybe my flames can help light the place up."

His fire wasn't as powerful as it had been, without his golden weapon. Still, he had been able to learn how to make the flames come from _him. _To show off a little, he lit a flame in the palm of each hand.

Cole stepped forward next. "Earth is my element. Maybe I can help out once we get inside to find our way around."

What he _didn't _say was that he was the leader of the ninja and couldn't show fear of some silly legends a bunch of villagers had come up with. So what if it was dark? Cole had braved plenty of things before.

Eventually, everyone volunteered except for Lloyd. Sensei gave the young boy a look, who finally relented. "Fine, I'll come too. But I'm staying in the back." He pouted.

Alex took a deep breath and headed into the cave, knowing she had everyone behind her. On her side.

…

They had been walking for a while, Kai up front with Alex to help light the way when he could, but the darkness kept smothering the flame before it could illuminate much.

"Remember, students," Sensei Wu said from the back, by his nephew, "do not get separated."

Kai's flame flickered out again, and he growled in frustration. In the darkness, he felt a hand on his arm, and he relaxed. Alex was trying to comfort him, which made him cool down.

"Ow!" Lloyd complained as he ran into a wall. Alex stifled a giggle, but then she heard something else.

"Mom?"

They all heard someone whimper that word. "Cole, don't follow-" Sensei began, but the ninja in question could be heard running after whoever he saw.

"Mom, don't leave me!" he cried, and Zane chose to follow his brother.

"Cole, stop!" Zane called after him, trying to follow the ninja by listening to his voice.

Their number already dwindling down, Alex took a fearful breath. She felt a hand slip into hers, and she squeezed it. It was warm and comforting - Kai's. She took another deep breath to keep the panic at bay before following the tug she felt pulling her further down.

They walked for a little while longer before the next hallucination appeared before someone.

"Mom? Dad?"

"Nya, no…" Jay pleaded, trying to regain her attention.

Kai summoned fire again, turning to look at his sister. In the dim light, he could see her longing for the parents they had hardly known. "Nya, you can't," he whispered.

But she had gone, running down a pathway after a vision only she could see. Kai knew that Jay would follow. And Jay did just that.

"Nya!" Jay was gone in an instant, swallowed by the darkness.

Alex felt the fear creep in again. Why was this her element? This didn't seem very helpful. Her group was only four people now. Kai was still with her, Lloyd and Sensei Wu behind them.

"Quickly, Alex," Sensei said. "As long as you get that katana, they'll all be okay."

Kai's light was extinguished again, and she had to rely on her own instincts. Down they went,with the temperature dropping constantly. Alex was glad that Kai was by her side. His fire was gone, but his warmth remained, and that still made her feel safe.

It took a while, but another vision appeared. This time, it aimed for Lloyd.

"Dad. . ?" he whispered, voice cracking. Alex felt her heart break for the young boy. He just wanted his dad, not an evil overlord.

"Go on ahead," Sensei said. "I'll take care of Lloyd."

Kai and Alex left the final two members of their team behind, plunging forward into the darkness.

"You doing okay?" Kai asked quietly. Their hands were still entwined, and he could feel her shaking.

She shook her head before realizing he couldn't see her. She took a deep breath to calm herself before answering. "I'm… fine," she lied.

Kai didn't call her obvious lie, instead trying to light a flame in his hand again. Like before, it spluttered out quickly without the power of the golden weapon to fuel it and the suffocating darkness.

"This is unnatural," he muttered under his breath. "I don't like this."

Alex was about to respond when she saw something. "Did you see that?" she asked.

Kai squinted, trying to see beyond the darkness. "I don't see anything," he said, beginning to worry. What was he going to do if she saw something, too?

Alex tugged him forward toward the light. "I think this is it. It feels right."

She couldn't explain what she felt, but she kept going forward until she felt Kai stop. Heart in her throat, she turned toward him. The light was close enough that she could see the far off look on his face.

"Mom… Dad…" he said, and Alex took her hand out of his grip. Her heart broke slightly as she realized he was seeing things, too.

"I'm sorry, Kai," she apologized, and left him behind. Nothing could get in the way of what she had to do. She couldn't let anyone hold her back.

The light she had seen came from a room lit by floating candles. It was an eerie setting. There was a huge hole across the room from her, and scratched tapestries covered the walls. In the center of the room, there was a pedestal with a sword. _Not sword, katana_, she corrected herself.

Slowly, she approached the pedestal, waiting for something to jump out at her. When nothing did, she reached out and grabbed the katana.

A gem on the hilt flashed and turned red, then dimmed to a dark grey. The weapon fit well in her hand, and she gave it a few experimental swings. Alex hadn't ever held a real katana before, but she'd fought her brother with toy swords.

A roar shook the cave, and Alex was so shocked that she fell to the ground. On her knees, she looked up as a pitch black dragon crawled out from the hole in the wall. Her breath caught as she stared into its luminous red eyes.

In a panic, she thrust the katana into the air. "Stay back!" she called, trying to keep fear out of her voice. "I am - I am the kunoichi of darkness! I'm trying to protect my friends! Please let me go help them," she begged. Her thoughts swirled, thinking about how they'd all run off after their own nightmares.

She was terrified, but she refused to back down to this dragon, her last obstacle. Standing on shaky feet, she pointed her katana at the dragon. "You're going to help me save them," she demanded.

The dragon stared at her with red eyes that unnerved her. It crawled forward until its nose was almost touching her katana. She lowered the weapon and stretched out her hand instead as a sign of peace.

The beast touched its nose to her palm, making her jump at the contact. The world disappeared and she was in a bright room filled with the light from a dozen lamps.

The dragon was still with her, and it looked at her. It tilted its head as if to say, _What are you going to do?_

Taking a deep breath, Alex concentrated on the light from just one of the lamps. She gripped the katana tightly, using its power to help guide her. She closed her eyes to imagine the darkness, and then pictured the lamp winking out.

A low rumble let her know she had done _something_, and she opened her eyes to see that the lamp in front of her had gone dark.

Alex grinned triumphantly, but it appeared the dragon was not impressed. It almost looked as if it was trying to raise an eyebrow at her. _Is that all?_ Is the question it seemed to be asking her.

Frowning, Alex held the katana tightly and imagined a cloud of darkness sweeping over the room and taking out each light, one by one. She furrowed her brow as the cloud she imagined appeared, and it went around smothering everything, leaving her and the dragon in pure darkness.

It didn't last long, for Alex was suddenly outside the cave on top of her dragon. The ninja, Nya, and Sensei Wu were spread out on the ground around her, groaning.

Nya sat up and held her head. "What happened?" Nya moaned.

Jay looked up to see Alex on her dragon. "Alex, you got your weapon! And a dragon! What are you going to name her?"

"I have to name her?" Alex asked, not having known the dragon would be hers.

Cole sat up next. "Yeah, we all used to have dragons. Mine was Rocky, Kai's was Flame, Jay's was Wisp, and Zane's was Shard. They all merged into the Ultra Dragon a little while ago, and that belongs to Lloyd now." The usually stoic black ninja looked saddened by the loss of his dragon.

"Mine is named Dusk," Nya added.

Alex got the theme of naming them after their elements, so she thought about names having to do with darkness.

"Nyx," she finally said, settling on the name of a Greek goddess.

"You may call the other dragons back now," Sensei said.

Lloyd and Nya didn't waste any time, and soon a humongous four-headed dragon and a sunset-colored dragon touched down. Jay and Nya immediately headed over to the sunset-colored one.

"Kai!" Alex yelled before she could stop herself. A faint blush lit up her cheeks. _What am I doing_? she berated herself.

The ninja in question turned around and gave her a quizzical look. "Yeah?"

Instead of responding, she simply patted a spot on her dragon behind her. A smirk turned up the corners of Kai's lips, making his amber eyes sparkle. He jogged over to her and hopped on.

His arms wrapped around her waist. "I'll teach you how to fly her," he promised.

"Thank you," Alex said quietly. She hesitated a moment before speaking again. "I'm sorry for leaving you behind."

She felt him stiffen behind her. "It's alright," he said. "You had to get your weapon, and you did. You saved us. You really do belong with us."

"Did you ever doubt it?" she teased, gently elbowing his ribs.

"No," he said easily, and the answer surprised him. He was reluctant to have a bunch of girls join their team, but Nya and Alex were doing well. He couldn't deny that they were a good addition to the team any longer.

Sensei Wu called from the Ultra Dragon, "Let's go, Ninja and Kunoichi! Back to Ninjago City!"

The three dragons lifted off. Back on the ground, three snakes peered out from a bush.

"Lord Garmadon will not be pleassssed that we didn't grab the girl," One of them said, stating the obvious.

One of his companions smacked him upside the head. "You idiot! There are two more girlsss, sssurely Lord Garmadon will find another one of them usssseful."

The third one chimed in to say, "Bessssidessss, we'll have a better chance next time. The ninja don't know that our goal is to capture the Kunoichi and bring them to Lord Garmadon."

The three snakes chattered away as they went to report on their progress. The ninja wouldn't see them coming next time…

**Ooh, an ominous ending! It may seem anticlimactic now, but Garmadon and Alex will eventually run into each other, and I've got some interesting things planned for interactions between Garmadon and the kunoichi. I guess you'll have to keep reading, then!**

**Things seem to be heating up a bit between Kai and Alex, so I wonder what will come of that? Well of course I know, but you all will have to find out! Next chapter I'll begin the first canon episode I'm putting in here, Pirates vs. Ninja! I think it turned well with me incorporating the kunoichi into it. I'm staying relatively close to canon while we gather the kunoichi, but as soon as they're all here, I'll begin making up my own stuff. **

**Please leave a review, and I'll be back next week!**


	7. New Talents

**I'm a day late again! I've been so darn busy this week, since I've been home from college and visiting all my friends and family. So sorry I'm late, but here I am! I've got some business to take care of before we begin today.**

**1\. A Twist of Fate has a NEW PROLOGUE! You heard that right, I rewrote it! I got a complaint about my story being a copycat, so I looked for myself. I came to the conclusion that the prologue should be rewritten, but everything else is fine. I mean, the whole female ninja trope? Not really unique to one person, anyway. The prologue kept the same elements, but it was rewritten and reformatted to be much better than before! So please go check that out!**

**2\. I'm pretty sure I promised that Pirates vs. Ninja would be this chapter, but when I reviewed my chapter before I posted it, I realized that that's simply not true. Sorry to disappoint, but Pirates vs. Ninja is NEXT chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.**

Alex woke up to an alarm blaring at sunrise. Nya groaned from the bunk beside hers. Without the other two kunoichi, they each had a bunk bed to themselves, and they had each chosen the bottom bunk.

Their apartment wasn't a complete dump like the boys' was. They had two bunk beds, a kitchen area, a bathroom, and a living room space. It was small, but it wasn't crowded yet. Alex hoped they found somewhere new to live before another Kunoichi showed up.

"What're we doing this mor-morning?" Alex yawned in the middle of her sentence, not completely awake yet.

Nya turned on their coffee maker, getting it ready for them. "We're going to take our dragons out for a ride to warm them up, then do some training outside Ninjago City. The boys are going to call us when they need us, and we're going to help Lloyd with the Ultra Dragon while they look for a dojo to train us and Lloyd in."

Alex yawned again, changing into comfy shorts and a T-shirt. Nya had been working with her on weapon training and Spinjitzu, and Alex swore she was close to figuring it out.

Alex shot off a good morning text to her parents and her friends before grabbing a cup of coffee and a granola bar. "You ready?" she asked Nya once she finished.

Nya was smiling softly at her phone, looking at the sweet message Jay had sent. "Yeah, I'm ready," she said after a moment.

The two Kunoichi got on their dragons and headed for a space outside Ninjago City. Alex was getting better at controlling her dragon. Kai teaching her back when she'd gotten her katana had been very helpful. She still remembered his hands on hers as he guided her on what to do…

They landed in a wide open field, perfect for training. Nya brought out her fans and sent an experimental gust of air at Alex, who managed to stand her ground.

"Warmup, then sparring?" Alex offered, beginning some stretches.

Nya agreed. They proceeded to quietly do some stretches, each lost in their own thoughts.

Nya thought back to her messages with Jay that morning. They were going to set up a date soon, as soon as the ninja found a place for Lloyd to train and that stress had been lifted. Her ninja's sweet demeanor was often charmed her, and he would undoubtedly try to woo her again on their date. Every date with him was like a blank slate. He tried just as hard on every one of them. They hadn't kissed yet, but Nya was hoping it would happen soon.

Maybe if they kissed, they'd also be able to say their true feelings…

Alex kept having the eyes of a certain fire ninja appear in her head. No matter how hard she tried to get him out of her mind, it wouldn't work. She hadn't felt this attracted to someone in a while, and she didn't want to get that close to someone like that again. At least, not yet.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Nya, what did you see in The Devil's Pit?" Alex asked her friend.

The Japanese girl frowned. "I saw my parents."

Alex remembered that much. Not wanting to push, she asked, "Are they gone?"

Nya bit her lip and nodded. "Yeah. My mom died giving birth to me, and my dad died out of grief and alcoholism when I was ten. I never knew my mother, and I rarely saw my real father. He was never violent, but all he did was drink." Her eyes were filled with sorrow, and Alex felt bad about her intrusive question.

"I'm sorry for bringing it up," Alex said quietly. It was the only consolation she could really give.

Nya grabbed her fans again, shaking off the bad memories. Alex picked up her katana, ready to spar.

Nya swung her fans at Alex to create a gust of air, which blew her back a few feet. Alex concentrated and darkness surrounded them, and only she could still see through it. Nya faltered enough for Alex to land a kick on the back of her knee, sending her to the ground.

In return, Nya swept a leg out to knock Alex over as well, using her fans to blow away the cloud of darkness. She leapt up, and Alex stood a few seconds later.

"Good job with the darkness covering your movements," Nya praised. "Now, move fast enough to get out of my way when I hit back."

Nya led with the same move again, using the winds to blow Alex off balance, but this time Alex flipped to the side, dodging the gusts.

"No fair," Alex complained with a grin to show her complaints weren't genuine. "You're the kunoichi of _air. _I can't move faster than you!"

Alex lashed out with her katana, but Nya blocked it with a fan, catching the katana in between two of the blades . Alex grinned and twisted her katana sharply, sending the fan out of Nya's hand.

Normally, Alex would have gloated. Today, she wanted to best Nya. She sent out another wave of darkness before Nya could get her second fan back, leaving her partner stranded with only half of her power.

Alex could see Nya squinting into the darkness and paused. With a cry, she yelled, "NINJA-GO!"

Nya saw a blur as a swirling dark Spinjitzu tornado came toward her, and before she could do anything, she was flung onto the ground. She gaped up at the tornado that became Alex again. Alex had a giant smug grin on her face.

"Nya! I did it!" Alex exclaimed. "And, I beat you."

Nya stood up and chuckled. "I guess you did…" she admitted, making Alex's grin widen even more. "Buuut, it was only because I got distracted. You've learned Spinjitzu, now learn how to use it in a fair fight."

Alex scoffed, "That _was _a fair fight! There are always surprises in a fight! You're just mad because I beat you." She crossed her arms and huffed in indignation.

Of course, neither of them were really serious. Alex burst out laughing, and Nya followed in suit. They were both doubled over until Nya straightened up.

"Really, you need to fight me again," Nya said, grabbing her second fan from where Alex had thrown it in their last fight.

"I thought for sure you'd let me off if I learned Spinjitzu…" Alex grumbled.

They both got into a fighting stance again. "Do that again and we can stop," Nya said.

A couple more hours passed before Nya let their training end for the day. Alex collapsed on the ground, not having been able to beat Nya again.

"You came really close several times," Nya tried to soothe Alex.

Alex squinted up into the sunlight. "It wasn't enough," she said solemnly.

"Well, no," Nya admitted. "But even though I haven't been a kunoichi for long, I was a samurai for a while before that. But you learned Spinjitzu really quickly! I'm proud of you."

Alex sat up with a soft smile. "Really?"

"Really," Nya promised. "Now, let's go meet Lloyd and show him how to take care of the Ultra Dragon."

Alex and Nya called Nyx and Dusk back over to them, and they got on their dragons to leave.

Alex, though discouraged by the many, _many _failures that had followed, was proud that she had learned Spinjitzu. The rush she'd felt when she'd done it had been incredible.

Unfortunately, that had opened Nya up to using _her _Spinjitzu, and Alex had gotten thrown around several times in that. Plus, she could never catch Nya off guard again. But now, Alex would take a win.

"Hey, Nya?" Alex called over.

"What?"

"Race ya there!"

Alex took off, getting a head start. Nya took off a second behind her, both of them flying as fast as they could to the top of the building the ninja were living in.

Alex loved seeing Ninjago City below her. She was aching to explore it, since seeing Ninjago was a large part of the reason she'd gone with the ninja. To be able to get out of the small town of Shian Hills…

And flying her dragon! Being able to ride Nyx was like a breath of fresh air. She could just fly into the sky and disappear, if she wanted to.

They touched down on the roof at the same time.

"I won!" They both yelled as they hopped down.

"Tie?" Nya suggested.

"Sure," Alex shrugged, not too caught up in it.

They both headed down to the ninja's room to get Lloyd, and they saw Lloyd punching Kai's hands, which had oven mitt coverings. Alex bit her lip, realizing why they wanted to find a dojo so badly. They were in _desperate _need of better equipment than oven mitts.

She glanced at the other ninja, noting that Zane was wearing a pink floral apron, Jay had a wooden spoon, and Cole appeared to have a pot on his head. Nya nudged Alex, and they both hid snickers behind a hand. Alex looked back at Kai training Lloyd.

Kai was trying to be encouraging, giving Lloyd pointers as he kept hitting the oven mitts.

"Ha! Fists of fury! You can't even see 'em move, I'm so fast! Ha!" Lloyd bragged, clearly seeing himself as better than he actually was.

Kai rolled his eyes, seeing himself in the young boy. "Save the gloating. It can only be used against you by your enemy."

Lloyd scoffed, knowing he was ready for more. "Oh, please. I'm ready to face whatever you throw at me." He kicked at Kai, and managed to knock Kai onto the ground.

"Whoa, grasshopper!" Kai cautioned. "You're not even ready to face my pinky toe." He wiggled his toes to emphasize his point.

"I see the student has become the teacher," Sensei Wu said from behind the boys. He had been observing the training. "You will learn fast, Lloyd, with lessons from the four ninja."

"Alex and I have some things to show off now, too," Nya said with a grin.

The boys all turned to see the girls, since they hadn't noticed the Kunoichi before. Lloyd pouted because they were going to take him to work with dragons - which _definitely _wasn't as cool as learning Spinjitzu.

Sensei nodded his head. "Show us what you have learned."

Alex stepped into the middle of the room, knowing Nya wanted her to show off her newfound Spinjitzu talent. She spun on her heel, and a dark tornado swirled around her in the middle of the cramped apartment. She stopped after only a moment, not wanting to create a mess.

Five ninja looked back at her, speechless. Nya was proud, and Wu was hiding a smile under his hat. "You have learned quickly," he said. "Very impressive."

"How come she learned it _first_?" Lloyd whined, irritated that the _new girl _had learned Spinjitzu before him.

Alex shrugged and looked back at Nya. "Just had a great teacher, I guess." The four older ninja bristled at the dig. "If you want, Lloyd, I bet Nya could help you."

Just as she'd suspected, Lloyd made a face. "Ew, gross! I don't need a _girl's _help."

Kai smacked the younger boy on the back of the head. "Hey, that _girl _is my sister, don't diss her!"

Lloyd grumbled something unintelligible before sitting down beside Jay on one of the beds.

Cole broke the tension by saying, "Great, now that _that _lesson is over, how about some target practice… on Kai?" He wiggled his eyebrows at the fire ninja, who started to fume before Wu cut them both off.

"You'll each get your turn. But now, Lloyd, Nya and Alex are going to teach you about dragons," Wu said. "Nya, go up with Lloyd. Alex, wait here with us for a moment."

Nya headed to the door, leaving Alex behind. "Come on, kiddo."

Lloyd wasn't quite ready to leave his training yet. "Aww, but when will I learn Spinjitzu?" he complained, still frustrated that he hadn't figured it out yet.

Sensei Wu sighed and gave his nephew the only advice he could. "Patience. It will only be unlocked when the key is ready to be found."

The old man had a point. Each person had a different way of learning Spinjitzu. Lloyd only needed to calm down and listen to himself. Then he would find the key. He already had all of the other pieces.

Lloyd groaned, knowing he wouldn't get out of it today. He silently went over to Nya, and they both went up to the roof to take care of the Ultra Dragon.

Cole laughed as soon as Lloyd was gone. "Hey, sound familiar?"

The question was clearly aimed at the red ninja, who looked a little put out. "I wasn't _that _whiny," he tried to defend himself.

Zane spoke up, saying, "No, you were worse."

Kai gasped, offended. "I was not! Besides, this is different!"

Alex watched the ninja argue, not noticing Sensei come up beside her.

"They are a rather entertaining bunch, aren't they?" It was a rhetorical question, but Sensei Wu had a humorous glint in his eyes.

Alex laughed at the ninja's antics. "They sure are something," she said, not knowing how else to describe it. They were all still messing with each other, and it was times like these where Alex found it hard to imagine that she'd be helping this group of people save Ninjago.

"How is your training going?" Sensei asked, changing the subject. His voice was louder than before, so he clearly wanted the ninja to pay attention.

The boys all looked at her as she thought about her training with Nya. "It's been a lot of sparring, since there's not much else to do. We don't have any kind of equipment, and our apartment is small too, so we just head to an open field outside of Ninjago. I've only managed to beat her once, and it's because I caught her off guard with my Spinjitzu," she admitted,wanting to be honest.

Jay piped up, "I know we're trying to prepare Lloyd and the kunoichi for the future, but it's hard to give them the best training in these conditions."

"Plus," Zane added, "we only have two of the Kunoichi. There are still two more to come, and they will need assistance as well."

Cole sighed. "I miss the Destiny's Bounty. Too bad it's gone."

"Destiny's Bounty?" Alex asked. She hadn't ever heard of that before. "What's that?"

"It was a big ship Zane found early on in our journey," Kai explained. "It has several rooms, a kitchen area, a training room…" he trailed off, lost in memory.

To Alex, that sounded exactly like what they needed. "Well, where is it?"

The ninja and Wu got somber. "Destroyed by the Great Devourer," Cole told her. "That's why we're stranded in Ninjago City right now."

"Well, wouldn't there be some kind of training facility in Ninjago City?" Alex asked. It seemed like a simple solution to her. "A gym or something?"

Sensei Wu considered her idea. "That is an excellent idea, Alex. Perhaps we could find somewhere else to aid your journey." He turned to the ninja, looking like he was about to give them a job. "Alex, thank you for your input. You may go join Nya and Lloyd."

"Thank you, Sensei," Alex said before running upstairs.

A week ago, Alex would have refused if someone told her to run up several flights of stairs. Now, in such a short amount of time, she found it to be fairly simple. She was still out of breath if she ran up them, but her legs didn't ache afterwards, like they used to.

She could hear Nya talking on the rooftop, so she opened the door quietly. "... but it's important to take care of him because one day, he'll be yours."

Nya was petting the Ultra Dragon gently, and Lloyd stood beside her. She must've gotten him to get over his anti-girl mindset for a few minutes. Alex went over and joined them, looking at the dragon that was so much bigger than hers.

Lloyd seemed surprised. "Mine? But he's so big! And the ninja owned the four dragons that make him up!"

Looking at the dragon, Alex could still differentiate each of the heads. She patted the red one, knowing it was Flame, Kai's dragon. The dragon head growled and nudged closer, making Alex laugh.

Nya nodded. "Sure. The elemental dragons were loyal to the four ninja. But the Ultra Dragon, he's meant for the green ninja to ride. And that's _you," _she said, pointing at Lloyd for emphasis.

"Wow!" Lloyd said, stepping back to admire the dragon. He was impressed by the creature before him, especially since it was meant for him.

"See?" Nya said. "Even a girl like me can show you cool stuff every once in a while."

"Well…" Lloyd grumbled, turning to look back at her, "I guess you do know a few things."

Alex finally spoke up, "I bet there's a few more things Nya could teach you if you're up for it."

Lloyd thought about it for a minute. "How do you fly?"

Nya patted her legs. "It's all in here."

Lloyd chuckled, realizing the girls weren't as bad as he thought. But he couldn't tell the guys that. He had a reputation to uphold!

"Once you learn how to fly him, you'll be able to say you have the biggest and fastest dragon in all of Ninjago!" Alex told him, knowing neither Dusk nor Nyx could outmatch that dragon.

The dragon roared in agreement, shaking its four heads. Alex and Nya stepped back, giving it some space as it spread its wings.

Lloyd grinned at the sight of the majestic dragon that would belong to him. "Yeah, and he'll be all mine!"

Nya patted the dragon's side. "Alright, go on! Get some exercise!" she urged the dragon.

It took off, and the girls and Lloyd silently watched it fly over the city. "He really is beautiful," Alex said quietly.

Lloyd looked up at her. "Yeah… yeah he is," he said. He hesitated a moment before speaking again. "But… you have a nice dragon, too."

Knowing it took a lot for the boy to compliment her, Alex smiled. "Thank you, Lloyd," she said.

Nya pulled out her phone and checked her messages. "Looks like we're looking out for you for now, kiddo. Want any tips, or do you just want to go down and read your comic books?"

The boy thought for a minute, but his twelve-year-old brain won out. "Comic books," he grinned.

They followed him downstairs, and sat down on one of the bunk beds while Lloyd sat on top of another. Alex looked around the small, cramped space.

"I think we got the better end of the living space deal," Alex said. The boys' place was a dump.

Nya laughed. "The funny thing is, they used to have a really nice place. They had more of a penthouse style place, and it had a spot to train Lloyd. But they didn't have enough money for it without all of them working all the time. They were all out doing jobs one day, and Lloyd almost got kidnapped. They had to give up the expensive place and settle for this dump."

Alex laughed with Nya. "Wow, that's rough."

"They didn't exactly like it," Nya admitted. Which was, of course, an understatement. "But Lloyd needs to be kept safe, so they were okay with it in the end."

Alex nodded along, and they lapsed into a comfortable silence for a while. Alex texted her parents, Lloyd read his comic books, and Nya read a book.

A couple hours passed before they heard from the guys again. Nya's phone went off, and she quickly answered it.

"Yeah? … Okay. I'll be there in a few… Yeah, I'll bring them too… Bye, Jay." Nya said into the phone before hanging up.

Lloyd hung off the top bunk. "What'd he say?"

Nya looked up at him with a grin. "He said that they found a place for us to train!"

Alex gasped and sat up. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Nya cheered. "But, uh, he warned me about the sensei there. Said he was kind of a weirdo."

Alex rolled her eyes. "Yeah, like I'm worried about a weirdo now."

Nya looked up the address. "Grand Sensei Dareth's Mojo Dojo," she read from her phone screen. "Huh. He definitely sounds interesting."

"Well…" Alex said. "I guess let's go check it out. Let's go, kid!" she called up to Lloyd.

The three of them walked to the dojo, following Nya's directions. It was the first time Alex had walked around Ninjago City, even if it was just to go to some bigshot's dojo.

The city was alive and bustling with people. It wasn't like Shian Hills, where no one was a stranger. Alex had never liked that, knowing someone was always in her business. There were also _so _many shops and parks! Alex wasn't a girly girl, but she did enjoy shopping.

"Can we go exploring later?" Alex asked Nya quietly as they neared the dojo.

Nya shook her head. "I've got to go work on something, so I can't. You'd have to ask one of the guys. They'll mostly be helping Lloyd, though."

Hesitating a moment, Alex shook her head. "I'll just do some training," she said with a bland smile. Looked like her dreams of seeing the city would have to wait another day…

They arrived at the dojo, and Nya dropped them off. "I've got some things to do at the shop, so call me if you need anything," she told them, then headed off.

Lloyd headed inside and the guys started working with him immediately, leaving Alex mostly to herself. She didn't mind much, just sat over on a bench and played with darkness, watching it crawl from under the bench and swirl between her fingers. It was much easier to manipulate it in small amounts now. Bigger amounts still took more concentration.

The darkness danced in her hands, creating shapes. Grinning, Alex thought back to when her father would make shadow puppets on the wall for her. She made one that looked like a rabbit before turning it back into shadows.

"You're getting the hang of it," Kai said from beside her.

Alex jumped, not expecting anyone to come up beside her. "I- I guess I am."

She continued to move the shadows between her fingers, then moved them toward him. They weaved through his hair, and he chuckled at her antics.

"Is Ninjago City much like Shian Hills?" he asked, trying to make conversation.

She laughed, bringing the shadows around her hands again. "Not at all, actually," she admitted. Alex looked up into his warm amber eyes.

"Have you gotten the chance to really explore it yet?" he asked, looking back at her.

"No... I asked Nya, but she said she was busy," Alex said sadly, looking back down at her hands. She messed with the shadow some more, the darkness giving her something to do.

Without her looking at him, Kai could admire her more openly. Her strawberry blonde hair was straight, but it had volume so it wasn't limp. He could see a light splatter of freckles on her cheeks. He leaned against the back of the bench, relaxing while he could.

"If you'd like," Kai began, "I'll go with you when I'm done here."

Alex's heart skipped a beat. "Really?" she asked excitedly. "Can you show me everything?"

"I'll show you all the best parts," Kai promised, smirking at her.

"Kai! Quit flirting and get over here!" Cole yelled from by Lloyd.

Kai chuckled, knowing the moment was effectively ruined. He looked over at Alex, whose face was red. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

She nodded, head filled with the thought of getting to explore Ninjago City with him later.

**I feel like I've apologized several times in these ANs this chapter, but here I go again: I'm sorry if this chapter dragged a little, but I wanted to show Alex begin to fit in with the ninja before I tackled a canon episode. That being said, this chapter sets up the next couple very nicely. Alex didn't get a training montage or anything, so maybe the next kunoichi will!**

**Thank you to for following and favoriting this story!**

**I'll see you guys again next week, so until then, please read and review!**


	8. Pirates vs Kunoichi

**Alright, so I may have skipped a week updating again. I don't really have an excuse this time except that I've been a little discouraged. I haven't gotten much response for this story, and while reviews aren't everything, I would appreciate feedback. That being said, I also got stuck on a chapter and needed some more time to think and write.**

**Oh, and I know the summary of this story promises a lot more Garmadon than I've shared so far. He's in here a bit this chapter, but he's got plans for later! Him and those snakes will be getting a lot more bold pretty soon...**

**Here it is though, our first canon episode! I fit the whole episode into this chapter, so it's a bit of a beast. Then again, it's nothing compared to the _next_ chapter, which is probably my favorite one so far. But here I am, back with my take on Pirates vs. Ninja! Or, in this case, Pirates vs. Kunoichi.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

Alex was sitting on a bench reading a book as the ninja trained Lloyd. Every once in a while, she'd look up to see how he was doing. No Spinjitzu for the young boy yet, but he seemed determined to figure it out.

Jay battled Lloyd on poles, working with him on balance. "You must be light on your feet. Hiyah!" Jay instructed, dodging Lloyd's blows.

The other ninja spent time working with Lloyd as well, each showing off their own strengths. Alex found it fascinating. Jay was the master of lightning, so speed and balance was his forte. Next up was Cole, who brought out a stack of boards and set them down for Lloyd.

Cole was clearly the strongest of the ninja, and as the master of earth, his strength was only amplified. He stood beside Lloyd, who was getting ready to strike all ten boards.

"When you strike with your fists, concentrate. You may be small, but you're strong," Cole assured him.

Lloyd closed his eyes to concentrate before striking the boards with all his might. The entire dojo quaked as the boards broke and Lloyd's power cracked the ground. Alex gasped as his strength threw her to the ground.

Kai was instantly by her side to help her up, but his eyes were still focused on the young boy in front of them. "That was the power of the Staff of Quakes. And you didn't even need the Golden Weapon!"

"But _you _can summon fire without the Golden Weapon," Alex whispered to Kai.

Kai raised an eyebrow at her, and she realized he had a notch in it. "It's complicated. I'll explain later."

Alex shrugged and turned away. What was the point of being a ninja if your powers were almost completely tied to a weapon?

"That must be why you have the potential to be the greatest ninja," Zane said, his voice filled with awe. "You can harness all of the Elemental Powers."

Lloyd looked down at himself, then back up at the ninja. "Really? _Cool!_."

As always, Sensei was ready to caution the young boy. "With this power, you must be careful. You must control it before it controls _you_."

From the other room in the dojo, a man came out. Alex stared, horrified, at the brown haired man with a very… _open… _shirt that showed off the hair on his chest. Alex's eyes began to burn, but she couldn't seem to tear them away.

"I have to admit, not bad for a kid. But instead of ten boards, how about _fifty_?" He gestured to a couple of his students, who began stacking a pile of boards.

While his students were busy with the task, the man looked at the ninja. His eyes locked on the girl with them. He then swaggered forward, clearly not noticing her discomfort.

"And who might this little lady be?" Dareth asked, winking at her. "I am Grand Sensei Dareth, soon to be the brown ninja!" He put a brown hood over his head that matched the rest of his outfit. "And if I break all fifty of these boards, would you accompany me on a date?"

Alex was about to speak up, but Kai beat her to it. "She's not going on a date with you," he growled.

Grand Sensei Dareth chose to ignore this. "Well, my talent will speak for itself. I break these boards, I get to be the brown ninja _and _a date," he bargained.

Jay burst out laughing. "The brown ninja?" he said, imitating the self proclaimed Sensei. "You gotta be joking!"

"Sorry, pal. Club's already full," Cole said. "Unless, of course, you're interested in being a kunoichi with Alex here. Whoops, that's a girls-only club."

Dareth sent another wink toward Alex, who cringed again. "Oh, a strong lady. Maybe you'll be able to keep up with me. Maybe."

Alex finally had enough of the pompous Sensei. She moved to sit back down on the bench, a smirk lifting the corners of her lips. "Go ahead, Grand Sensei Dareth," she encouraged him. "Break those boards."

_Maybe even your hand_, she thought sadistically. But her pleasant smile stayed on her face.

"Jeffy, Phil, are we ready?" Dareth asked his students.

The two boys, who must have been Jeffy and Phil, gave a short bow for their sensei. "Yes, Grand Sensei Dareth."

Then, the _real _show began.

"Observe. I call upon the greatest animal to give me strength, The Dragon," Dareth proclaimed. Alex snickered as he mimicked what he believed a dragon to look like, supposedly 'summoning its power.' "Heeyah!" he shrieked as he hit the boards, but his battle cry quickly turned into a cry of pain.

Alex and the ninja burst out laughing, as Dareth hopped around his dojo.

"Oh, man," Jay cackled. He almost felt sorry for the guy, but Dareth had it coming. "Ouch."

All of a sudden, Alex heard screaming from outside the dojo. "What's that noise?" she cried, running over to the window.

For a moment, all seemed well.

Then Alex saw _pirates _outside the dojo stealing money and belongings from the people of Ninjago City. She let out a cry of astonishment. When she learned she was going to be a kunoichi, this wasn't quite what she had in mind.

They were everywhere, and Alex was frozen in shock. She couldn't move, and only stared at the pirates terrorizing the city.

She felt a comforting hand on her shoulder. From the warmth it emitted, she knew it was Kai without looking.

One hand shook as she lifted it to point out the window. "Pirates…?" she whispered, a question more than a statement.

No one seemed particularly interested in answering her silent question: _Where did they come from? _Instead, they grimly watched for a few moments before shaking off the shock and beginning to think.

Cole furrowed his brow, making the caterpillars above his eyes more prominent. "Pirates haven't been around for centuries," he muttered.

"Hey, that's our ship!" Jay cried, distracting them from the question of the pirates Sure enough, there was a giant ship _in the sky. _

Alex remembered the story about the ship they used to have with a training center in it. "I don't think I remember you saying the ship could fly!"

Jay nodded excitedly. "Oh yeah, it flies. Big system to make it work, me and Nya always had a good time working on it together." Then he was lost, a dreamy smile on his face.

Kai smacked him harshly. "Quit dreaming about my sister!" he scolded. "We have more important things to worry about."

"Yeah," Cole said, stepping back from the window. "Like where did they all come from?"

"I sense Lord Garmadon is somehow behind this," Zane said, finally answering Alex's unspoken question.

Lloyd got into a battle stance, ready to face the pirates. "How are we gonna follow them?"

Kai turned to the other ninja with a grin and pulled a bus token out of his pocket. "Perhaps this can be of some use"

The ninja and Alex all changed completely into their suits, and Kai paused. "Ugh, I don't like the kid coming along. It's too dangerous. Alex, stay with him."

"No way!" Alex protested. "I've been training, and I've even mastered Spinjitzu."

"Please, please, please," Lloyd begged beside her. "I'll be super good," he promised with a sugary smile that said he wouldn't swear to anything.

Zane sighed, "The powers inside you are still too great, too uncontrollable."

Cole patted Lloyd on the head. "One of these days you'll be able to join us. Sorry, kid."

"Alex, we really need someone to watch him," Kai told her. "We can't let the future of Ninjago get himself into danger."

Alex rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, just another excuse to get rid of me too. Go save Ninjago without us, I guess."

Kai shot her a grin and the four ninjas leapt away, aiming for a bus passing by. As they hopped inside, Alex managed to hear a final snippet of Kai's voice. "I can't believe I'm saying this but, _Follow that ship!_"

Alex let her frown turn into a devilish grin. She looked at Lloyd. "Now, how about we go get some backup and save their butts?"

"But I thought they wanted us to stay here," Lloyd said, not following her quite yet.

"You're from Darkley's, aren't you?" Alex asked. When Lloyd nodded at her, she shook her head. "I don't know if I believe that, you're too good at listening for a Darkley's boy."

As Alex told Lloyd her plan, the ninja were stuck on the bus as it stopped for a little old lady crossing the street.

"Come on!" Jay yelled. "The city isn't getting saved any faster if we're stuck up here!"

Cole smacked Jay on the back of the head. "Can it."

"But it's getting away!" Jay protested as they all watched the ship fly away.

In front of the bus, the old lady's bag ripped, spilling her groceries all over the ground. "Oh!"

The ninja sighed in unison, and Cole turned to Kai. "Why wouldn't you let Alex come with us?"

Kai frowned. "Is that really important right now?"

Cole grinned at the fire ninja. "You know, you only get protective over people you care about." Cole wiggled his eyebrows.

"What!" Kai exclaimed. "What are you trying to say?"

Before Cole could respond, the bus began to move again. The old lady had safely crossed the street with the help of Zane, who had carried her belongings for her. The white ninja jumped back on the bus, having sped up the process immensely.

"After that ship!" Kai yelled for a second time, and the bus took off

…...

Up on the roof of the dojo, Dareth posed as he prepared to take down the pirates himself and show the ninja how worthy he was to become one of them. With a battle cry, he leapt onto the ship.

Surrounded by pirates, Dareth felt no fear as he said, "Surrender, or face the Brown Ninja!"

The captain of the ship, Captain Soto, didn't miss a beat before saying, "Pajama man! Get him!"

'Now I have them!' Dareth thought triumphantly. It was his time to show that he was worthy of being the brown ninja! He got into position and…

"The wolf!" Dareth cried with an accompanying howl.

Pirates around him could only stare, and Dareth knew they were in awe. His knowledge was beyond anything else!

Next, he crouched down low. "The spider," he said, and then made a chattering noise to mimic a spider.

The pirates were beginning to shake off their confusion and crept closer. Dareth knew it was time for his greatest trick of all.

"The hippo!" he snorted.

Captain Soto finally had enough of Pajama Man's foolishness. He strode up to the man and used his sword to rip open the man's shirt as a warning. Within seconds, members of his crew had the man tied up on the deck of his ship.

"Those swords are really sharp," the Pajama Man said absently. Captain Soto aimed one at the man's face, and he cringed away. "Aw, nuts," he muttered.

Captain Soto went back up to the top deck of his ship, leaving his crew to take care of the strange man.

"We have more pillaging to do," Captain Soto said with a smile. "Let's move through the city, men!"

One of his crew members took control of the ship. "Where to, Captain?"

Captain Soto couldn't say for sure. "Anywhere you'd like," he yelled. His men always had an eye for shiny things.

Before he could go back to pillaging the city, Captain Soto added, as an afterthought. "Mates, keep an eye out for any other silly masked pajama people."

_Better to be safe than sorry_, he thought with a shake of his head. _Of course, this one wasn't too much of a challenge…_

…

Alex was running down the streets of Ninjago City, Lloyd right at her side. She was amazed that this kid was keeping up with her so well - she wasn't a veteran runner or anything, but the kid was probably 12 or so. It was impressive. Plus, she needed him by her side. She had no clue where she was going.

"This is going to take way too long" Lloyd whined beside her. Astounding athleticism aside, he was still an impatient kid.

Alex rolled her eyes but found herself grinning anyway. "You said Nya's shop was somewhere up here, right? And this would be the best place to find her?"

Lloyd nodded in affirmation. "She's always here working on stuff when she's not working out or teaching me about the Ultra Dragon."

They both slowed down to a brisk walk, taking a breather before they found Nya and went to save the boys. "You guys always have stuff going on, don't you?"

The younger boy looked up to the sky, deep in thought. "It wasn't always like this. They used to spend a lot of time playing video games. Now the ninja are training me all the time, and Nya is helping find the other kunoichi instead of building as much as she used to. Ever since the Great Devourer, things have been different." He sighed, lost in his thoughts for a few moments. There used to be so many video games and pranks and candy…

For a moment, Alex saw something flicker in Lloyd's eyes. He seemed to possess an unusual amount of maturity for a kid his age.

Of course, that was only in certain instances. She could tell that he was a troublemaker that would do anything for a good laugh or a bit of candy.

Besides that, he was like a boy growing up too soon. No twelve-year-old kid should have the knowledge that he would be pitted against his father to decide the fate of Ninjago. Already the boy was reminiscing about things he should still have within his reach.

Alex smiled sadly, knowing that Lloyd Garmadon's future would be hard. But he still had plenty of time before his fate caught up to him. After all, he was only twelve.

She thought quickly, trying to come up with a lighter subject to break the silence. "You know, Lloyd, maybe we'll get paid in candy for saving the city."

Even though it was clearly a joke, the boy's green eyes lit up. They were full of mischief once more. 'There he is…' Alex thought with a grin.

"Do you think the pirates stole any candy that we could just 'forget' to return?" His face bore an impish grin.

Alex shrugged in return. "It's possible. I guess we'll just have to check ourselves."

The boy beside her laughed, but it was cut short as they heard yells from the pirates in the sky. 'Will this whole kunoichi thing ever get less weird?' Alex wondered. But a part of her already knew the answer to that.

"Are we close?" Alex knew that Lloyd had been to Nya's shop on several occasions, so he would likely know if they were almost there.

Lloyd nodded, pointing ahead. "Just around the corner of this building and on the right."

Together they jogged the last few paces. As they grew closer, Alex heard the banging noises that came from a garage like the one Nya worked in. Sure enough, the shop was exactly where Lloyd said it was, and Nya was inside. Her face was covered as she worked on a strange looking vehicle. Alex paused to look at it as Lloyd ran up to Nya.

It could fit four people, with one up front driving and the rest vertically behind the driver. It was an odd setup, one that Alex had never seen before. Was this Nya's? And how did she even afford it?

"Nya!" Lloyd hollered at the kunoichi of wind. "Nya, there's pirates and we need your help!"

The banging of metal on metal was too loud, and Nya continued to work away on one of the tires. Could they even be called that? It looked more like the treads of construction equipment.

Alex tore her gaze away from the vehicle and went up to Nya. "Nya!" She grabbed Nya's shoulder as she spoke, making the other girl startle.

Nya pulled the mask off of her face and put down the tools, glancing quickly between Alex and Lloyd. "Where's everyone else?"

_Where's Jay? _was the question she didn't ask.

The screams of people in Ninjago City broke the silence of Alex's hesitation. Nya didn't need anything more than that to know something was wrong and they had come for her help.

"NINJA-GO!" Nya cried, spinning into her suit. Alex followed her lead, and Lloyd was already in his green ninja uniform.

"Where's the issue?" Nya was all business now, her face determined. "You can explain on the way there."

Alex and Lloyd shared a look before grinning at Nya. "Well, we may need to get to higher ground first," Alex said.

"We should call the dragons!" Lloyd cheered, excited to be a part of the plan.

Nya nodded. "Then let's do it."

...

By this point, Captain Soto was tired of the Pajama Man. He cackled and pointed to the plank going off the side of his ship. "How about we have him walk the plank?"

The other pirates joined him in laughing, filling the ship with noise. Dareth's fear was clearly displayed on his face, but he was still putting on the 'tough guy' act.

"You're making a big mistake," he warned, wriggling in his ropes. Captain Soto led him to the plank, and with a gulp Dareth stepped on. "Don't make me call upon the dragon."

The ninja were disguised in the back of the crowd of pirates, helplessly watching. They were still too far away to save Dareth, and they couldn't risk blowing their cover. On the other hand, they couldn't let Dareth fall off the ship.

"We have to save him," Jay hissed to Kai.

"I know, I know," he muttered. "Try and stall them while I get closer."

Kai began to creep forward, blending in with the crowd of pirates. Cole followed behind him, not wanting to be left behind. Zane stayed back with Jay to think.

"Who here wants to see him go splat?" Captain Soto yelled. The pirates all cheered, excited at the thought of bloodshed. Captain Soto nudged Dareth forward with his sword. The man took a few more shaky steps.

Thinking quickly, Jay called out in his best pirate voice, "Who here wants to see him live?"

The pirates cheered just as loudly for a moment, but the sound died down quickly once they realized what they had cheered for.

Captain Soto cackled. "The plank's getting shorter, huh Pajama Man?" His voice was a cruel taunt.

Dareth gulped. The plank _was_ getting shorter. He opened his mouth, and a steady stream of words came out, "We don't need to do this, fellas. I'm a lousy martial artist. What I do, I wouldn't even call it an art. I know I'm a brown belt, but I painted it! And my trophies? They're all fake!"

In the crowd of pirates, Kai and Cole facepalmed.

"Out of time," Captain Soto sang. With one last push, Dareth was sent off the plank.

"No!" Dareth screamed, but he was cut short.

Instead of hitting the ground, he had landed on the back of a giant four-headed dragon.

"Whoo-hoo!" Lloyd crowed.

"I-I called the Dragon," Dareth said in disbelief. His face broke out into a smile. "I called the Dragon!" he yelled triumphantly.

Lloyd and his dragon disappeared to drop the sensei off somewhere else.

The ninja all knew it was time to fight the pirates. "NINJA-_GO_!"

In a second, they were all in their gis.

"More Pajama Men?" Captain Soto cried.

A lone pirate with two eye patches wandered around between the ninja and the pirates, a parrot squawking on his shoulder. "Where? I can't see!"

Kai got into position to fight. "Ninja versus pirates. Who will win?"

The pirates began to growl menacingly at the ninja. The ninja each got out their weapons, a sad imitation of the golden weapons they'd once had. All except for Zane, who'd chosen instead to fight bare-handed.

Cole swung his scythe in a clean line, cutting Captain Soto's feather off of his hat.

The feather floated to the ground, an almost peaceful sight.

That was the final straw for Captain Soto. With a growl, he lunged forward, the rest of his men followed behind him.

Immediately, Zane brought out his _true _weapon. Alex's powers had given him the idea to bring smoke bombs on missions, and he held two in his hands. He squeezed them, and the ship was covered in white smoke. He used that as a distraction to throw his shurikens at Captain Soto, pinning him to the mast of the ship.

Across the ship, Jay was taking on two pirates. He easily knocked them both out with his nunchucks, sending one off the side of the ship.

Kai fought two pirates with his sword, driving them back. He caught a glimpse of a third pirate in the reflection of his sword. He paused and thought quickly before raising his sword in the air, blade down, and driving it into the ship.

_Sorry, Destiny's Bounty,_ he thought.

He used his sword to swing around and kick the three pirates away, winning his own battle as well.

Zane had already taken out Captain Soto with his two shurikens and now brought out a whip with a metal piece on the end. He flicked it at the pirate advancing on him, successfully winning against him as well.

By the plank, Cole was fighting No-Eyed Pete. It was a frustrating battle, since the pirate had no eyes and was relying solely on advice from the parrot on his shoulders.

Cole's scythe got stuck in the ship after a particularly strong blow missed No-Eyed Pete, and he grabbed the parrot right off the pirate's shoulder. The parrot squawked indignantly and Cole held out his right fist.

"Right!" the parrot yelled to his master.

No-Eyed Pete followed his parrot's words, taking him straight into Cole's fist and knocking himself out.

The ninja seemed to have a clear advantage, and Jay found himself on the side of the ship without a pirate to fight. He looked around to see that most of the pirates were being taken care of. Stil, one could always use a little help. To his right, he spotted a gumball machine. In a flash of genius, he smashed his nunchucks against it, breaking the glass. The gumballs flew all over the deck of the ship.

Ninja and pirates alike slipped and fell on the balls, causing everyone to turn and see who'd caused the problem. Jay, the only ninja left standing, sheepishly grinned.

"Jay!" Cole accused from the ground.

"Oops!" Jay chuckled. That hadn't quite been his plan…

Captain Soto cackled, not clumsy enough to have fallen like the rest of his crew.

Three dragons flew by the ship, and three masked individuals jumped onto the ship. One green, one orange, and one grey.

"Ninja, go!" Lloyd yelled as he grabbed a rope and swung around, hitting Zane and Captain Soto.

Alex and Nya each grabbed their silver weapons, and Nya ran to help the other ninja with the pirates.

"Pirate, go!" Captain Soto yelled a mockery of what the pajama people kept saying and slashed at Lloyd.

Lloyd didn't have a weapon and hardly had any training, so he could only try to dodge as the sword came directly at him.

Alex was in front of him in an instant, blocking Captain Soto's sword with her katana. "Go on, kid, I've got this."

Lloyd tried to run off, but Kai was in his way. "Lloyd! Alex! You were supposed to stay behind!"

His eyebrows were furrowed, clearly displaying his displeasure to the green ninja. Alex was busy fighting Captain Soto, using her shadows to confuse him.

She ducked under a blow from the captain before responding. "Don't get your panties in a twist, Kai. We're just here to help."

One of his eyebrows twitched. Without responding, he grabbed Lloyd and shoved him in a barrel. "Stay put," he growled at the kid.

The young boy channeled what he'd learned from Darkley's: Don't listen.

Lloyd began to wiggle around in the barrel, finding his feet and moving around. He rammed right into the lever controlling the anchor. The anchor fell, freed from the ship. Lloyd knocked into Alex and the pirates, sending them to the ground. Kai dodged the boy in the barrel once, but he ended up getting thrown off in the second attempt.

He yelled and grabbed the dropping anchor. _I knew they should've stayed behind…_

Nya heard the commotion and turned to see the anchor dropping off the side of the ship, the heavy metal plummeting toward the city. "No!" she gasped, running to lift it.

She used her power over air to halt the anchor's descent. Alex appeared and began to search for a way to get it back up.

"Get the anchor up!" Nya yelled, her powers straining under the weight of Kai and the anchor.

Alex looked around frantically, trying to figure out how it had been dislodged. She remembered Lloyd knocking her over and some sort of click - maybe there was a lever up where she'd been?

She ran to the upper deck of the ship, finding a lever on the ground. Alex pushed it, and Nya felt the relief of pressure being taken off her as the anchor began to rise.

The girls breathed out a sigh of relief. All was well.

"Come here, you blurry little munchkin!"

Not everything, apparently.

Lloyd was still in the barrel dodging Captain Soto's sword. Alex ran up there to fend off the pirate to protect Lloyd.

Before she reached him, the barrel yelled, "NINJA-GO!" and exploded into a green tornado.

Alex watched in awe as Lloyd discovered Spinjitzu, the sight truly being wonderful. She could now see why he was so jealous that she'd figured it out before him - it was cool!

"Whoa, Spinjitzu! I just did Spinjitzu for the first time!" Lloyd cheered, turning to Alex for praise.

With his back turned to the pirate, Captain Soto lifted his sword to finally hit the boy. Alex threw herself forward to block the blow, once again saving Lloyd. "Congrats, kid," she managed.

Filled with the rush from his newfound powers, Lloyd concentrated and began to call upon the powers of the green ninja.

Unseen by anyone on deck, Lord Garmadon was watching his son from below. He saw the great power his son commanded and was filled with sorrow. "My son," he whispered, almost proud. But he remembered their fate and shook it off. "He's growing stronger."

Lloyd created a ball of green energy and sent it toward the pirates.

"Lloyd, no!" Alex and Kai yelled in unison.

But it was too late. The energy circled around the ship before running into the mast, knocking it over.

Nya let out a yell and used her powers to stop the mast before it could hit the ninja. Alex used her darkness to cloud the eyes of the pirates, leaving them confused and unable to run. The two girls worked together to make the mast land on the pirates instead of the ninja.

Garmadon watched all of this happen, as well. He turned to the snake next to him. "Didn't I give an order to kidnap the kunoichi of darkness?"

The snakes around him chuckled uneasily. One finally spoke up, and Lord Garmadon recognized him as one of the ones he had sent after the kunoichi. "Well, _you sssee_, we didn't have a good opportunity, and we decided to kidnap the next one inssstead."

The Dark Lord groaned at the snake's ineptitude. "Just get me one of those kunoichi. I don't care how."

"Who wins between pirates and ninja? It's the kunoichi!" Jay cheered for his girlfriend and Alex.

The two girls high fived, the fallen pirates behind them. Jay sighed dreamily at the sight of Nya.

Alex walked over to Kai, who was grumpily standing to the side. He raised an eyebrow at her, seemingly unimpressed.

"You should be lucky I'm not good at listening," Alex commented. "I think Lloyd is a bad influence on me."

"The kid came from Darkley's," Kai responded. "And if anything, I think you're a bad influence on him - and I didn't know that was possible!"

Alex gave him a grin, flashing him pearly white teeth. Her eyes sparkled with laughter, and she looked radiant, even after the fight. _What's happening to me?_ Kai thought.

"Anyway, I think the phrase you're looking for is 'thank you,'" Alex nudged him. When he didn't respond, she shrugged. "Well, my answer is, 'you're welcome' anyway."

The ship landed, and police were ready with handcuffs to apprehend all of the pirates. They had caused a lot of destruction to the city, and someone needed to be arrested.

"Good work, team," one police officer said as he herded pirates into the police car.

Kai didn't hesitate before proudly stating, "Don't forget to include these guys." He waved at the two kunoichi and Lloyd, who all beamed with recognition.

"You guys did great today," Cole said. He opened his mouth to say more encouraging things, but a policeman cut him off.

"Uh, that your ship?" the man asked.

Jay nodded at the officer, excited to finally get their ship back. "It sure is."

The policeman pointed up to the ship, where Lord Garmadon stood with a bunch of snakes. The man cackled, since things had gone his way once more. "Sorry, you snooze, you lose."

"Lord Garmadon!" Kai yelled the name of the man, giving Alex a clearer picture of who they would be up against.

Beside her, Lloyd looked up to his father. "Dad!" he cried, stretching his arms up toward him.

For a moment, Lord Garmadon looked regretful. But when he spoke, his words cut deep.

"You're becoming stronger, son, but you'll never be strong enough to defeat me. Give up, before it's too late." His words were an offer for his son to join him, but the green ninja looked between his friends and his father and knew where he belonged. He stepped back into line with the ninja, wordlessly stating that he had already chosen his side. "Have it your way."

The next words he spoke were aimed toward the ninja, and were filled with true rage. "Another day, ninja. Another day," he warned.

Jay groaned. "Ah, great. Lord Garmadon is back, and now he's got our ship. This just can't get much better!"

"Well, at least we've got this little guy," Cole said, patting Lloyd on the shoulder.

"And we have the kunoichi, which Sensei has already said will be of great use in the final battle," Zane said. It was a purely factual statement, he hadn't gotten close enough with either kunoichi to see them as sisters yet. Even if Nya had been part of the team for a while.

The ship carrying Lord Garmadon and the snakes flew away, leaving the ninja and the kunoichi behind to watch it. A masked figure snuck up on Jay and tried to attack him, but Jay reacted quickly and flipped the masked man over his shoulder. He landed on his back with a _Thud!_

"Oh, come on, guys," Dareth said, taking off his mask. "I Dareth you to forgive me." He looked up with a pleading smile.

The team laughed together, knowing that they had a lot of work ahead of them before the final battle.

**I should be back sometime next weekend unless something pops up. As always, please leave a review or favorite this story, I want to hear what you guys think! **

**And next chapter is going to feature a few of our favorite ninja and kunoichi _outside _the uniforms. It's my favorite chapter so far, so I hope you guys are looking forward to it as well! See you next week!**


	9. A Moment in Time

**Hey again! It's been a couple of weeks, but I'm back right before Christmas! An early Christmas to those who celebrate it, and I hope everyone else is having a wonderful December. I sure am, I just got home from college from break and I'm posting my favorite chapter so far. **

**In this installment of A Twist of Fate, I'll be primarily focusing on Kai, Alex, Jay, and Nya. In the upcoming chapters a new ninja will get the chance to shine, so these four will take the back burner for a while. This chapter is my masterpiece. It comes in at 6,481 words. That makes this the longest chapter I have ever written, and these ANs are going to make it even longer. It's full of fluff and a bit of setup for the next little arc of the story. I hope you enjoy it as much as I hope you will!**

**Disclaimer: Ninjago is not mine.**

The days following the pirate attack seemed to fly by as the team got busy trying to find the next kunoichi. Nya and Alex focused on training, and the boys all traded off between helping Lloyd and searching through scrolls with Sensei Wu.

With the use of Dareth's dojo as a training space, the apartment became quieter and more useful for research. Sensei had brought some of his scrolls over, the papers covering both bottom bunks. The older man poured himself a cup of tea and began to go through the prophecies, eyes scanning the pages.

The one he was looking at was the most familiar to him. The prophecy of the green ninja. It brought back so many memories…

Finding out that Lloyd would have to face his father had not been an easy realization. Before the young boy was born, Sensei had done some research and found out the dark future he had in front of him. The green ninja had no shortage of prophecies about him, and it filled severals scrolls. One scroll in particular held a few dark secrets still and was currently locked away, far from sight.

His nephew was training with Kai and Jay, leaving Cole and Zane with him. Cole was the only one currently looking at prophecies, Zane was fiddling with his falcon. As soon as they had a lead on the kunoichi's location, they would send the bird out as a scout.

Zane finished tinkering with the bird, having added a cord to connect it to a cell phone. Without the monitor on Destiny's Bounty, there was no way for anyone besides Zane to see what the falcon saw. Until now.

"Sensei?"

Two heads jerked up and looked at the speaker. Cole's eyebrows were furrowed as he peered down at the prophecy. "This one is about the silver Whip of Waves. Its location is the most famous waterfall in Ninjago, with its pounding waters that are impenetrable to everyone who has tried to go past. It's called-"

"Ikaika Falls," Zane finished. His mind worked faster than Cole could speak. He processed the information that came along with the name, speaking what was important. "Ikaika means powerful in the native language of the people there. Legend states that the god of water hid a powerful weapon in an underwater cave behind that waterfall. It's right outside of Ka Nalu, a small town right by the ocean. It's full of fishermen and merchants since it's a valuable port."

Cole and Sensei just nodded along, letting Zane fill them in. When it was clear he had finished, they all thought for a long moment.

Since Alex had been found in a village right outside of the cave where her silver weapon was, beginning the search for the kunoichi of water in Ka Nalu was their best option.

A smile curved Sensei Wu's lips upwards, but the gesture was largely hidden by his long grey mustache. "Very well done, Cole. Zane, send the falcon out to watch the area. Tomorrow, you are all free to rest. I think it's time we have a break."

…

Lloyd cheered once he heard the good news. "A break!" His dull sword clattered on the ground, forgotten.

In an instant, Kai had his sword pointed at the boy's chest. "I win."

"Hey!" Lloyd whined. "That's not fair! I was distracted."

Kai sighed and brought his sword down. Lloyd crossed his arms over his chest, clearly pouting over his unfair defeat.

"There are _always _distractions on the battlefield." Kai picked the second sword up off the ground, swinging both in tandem. While Lloyd's eyes were on his tricks, Jay came up behind the boy and knocked him to the ground. "We're training you to look past them."

With a groan, Lloyd sat up. "That hurt." He glared accusingly at Jay, frustrated that he'd been duped.

Jay gave him a sheepish grin. "You were supposed to be taking on both of us. And in a real battle, you aren't going to get a break. We may have a break from training tomorrow, but I bet you'll still have things to learn. You're stuck with Sensei." He drifted off into his thoughts, thinking about taking Nya on a date.

He'd saved what was left of the money he'd earned from the pizza delivery job. With how much he had, he could buy a nice dinner for the two of them. They could dress up, and he could buy her flowers…

The blue ninja was the sappiest of the four ninja, but the other three hadn't had much of a chance to explore their romantic side. Cole had a few girlfriends back when he was at the Marty Oppenheimer, and even Kai had a girlfriend back when he was a blacksmith. But they were younger then, and love wasn't the same as it was now.

And besides, Jay was head over heels for Nya. He hoped that a nice dinner would warrant a wardrobe to match. Maybe Nya would wear blue.

Kai narrowed his eyes at the blue ninja's goofy smile. "Thinking about Nya?" The ninja's voice was deadly quiet.

Remembering where he was, Jay snapped out of his thoughts. "Heh. Sorry."

He didn't sound very sorry, which made Kai growl lowly in the back of his throat. Jay held his hands up to ward off the fire ninja, knowing his overprotective and sometimes explosive tendencies.

Lloyd watched the exchange with an eager grin. He'd stood up by now, and this was _way _more entertaining than pouting on the floor. The lovestruck ninja would often forget that his lover was the fire ninja's sister - which led to trouble.

And he got to watch.

Taking a step toward Jay, Kai gritted his teeth. "So you _were _thinking about Nya?" The question was laced with danger, a hidden warning if Jay didn't answer well.

"Uh, you know how I deeply care for Nya," Jay began to ramble, his eyes wide. "I'd never do anything to hurt her and of course she's on my mind all the time-"

If Kai hadn't stopped him, the ninja with the lightning mouth never would've ceased talking. It was one of his many talents, but it often grated on the other ninja's nerves.

Instead of letting him continue, Kai asked a question that made Jay stop talking and freeze.

"Do you love her?"

"I'm out!" Lloyd yelped and escaped the dojo, not wanting to hear about Jay's feelings for the kunoichi of air.

Jay's face was pale, and his hands shook as he tried to answer Kai's question.

Knowing that he had won, Kai stared at Jay with a smirk.

Jay's mind raced as he tried to come up with a response that wouldn't end with him skewered on the business end of Kai's sword. "I, uh… I really feel… strongly…"

"I bet you can't tell Nya that you love her on a date tomorrow," Kai stayed bluntly, the smug look never leaving his face.

_And if he can't, then that shows how little he really cares about my sister_. Kai was overprotective for sure, but this was his most devious plan yet. Threats had always been made, but none carried out like this.

Kai's blood chilled as the ninja of lightning looked up at him, no longer shaking in fear of his wrath. Instead, there was a hint of a smile on his face.

This game had just gotten even more interesting.

"What about we make a deal?" Jay offered nonchalantly. "My end of the deal is that I tell Nya that I love her. We'll go on a date tomorrow, I'll pay for dinner, the works. Nya will be treated exactly how she deserves to be-"

"What's the deal, Jay?" Kai cut him off sharply, knowing that Jay could ramble on for days if he let him. Plus, he _really _didn't want to hear more about how his sister would be treated. That would be a little too much information for him.

The smile finally appeared on Jay's face, but Kai wasn't scared. He could face anything the ninja threw at him.

"There's a certain new kunoichi who wants to see Ninjago City. Take her around the city, and make sure to end the date on top of Ninjago Tower." Jay's plan was simple, and he said it like it was nothing.

Kai felt the beginnings of a red hot blush begin to climb up his neck, and he fought it back. "You tell Nya you love her, and I take Alex on a date?"

"I never said it was a date," Jay grinned. "An outing, yes. An excursion, sure. A trip, maybe. But a date? That's up to you, buddy."

Jay gave Kai a pat on the back. Kai bit his lip, his nails digging into his palms.

"So I just… take her out?"

What shocked Jay was how unsure of himself Kai sounded. He'd never seen the fire ninja timid - or even anything close to it. In that moment, he knew what he had to do.

"Don't worry, Kai," Jay said, but his look only made Kai worry. "The master of love can handle this."

…

It was late afternoon when Nya and Alex trudged into their apartment, slick with sweat and muscles screaming. Alex flopped onto the bottom bunk, once again glad she didn't have to climb up a ladder to reach her bed. Nya followed her lead by collapsing on the other bed.

"My legs hurt," Alex whined. Today had been full of more stretching and flipping and jumping than normal. Nya has been using her element to her advantage, and Alex often had to contort her body to evade a harsh blow of wind.

Nya nodded, then remembered Alex couldn't see her. "Mine, too. But we get a break tomorrow, which means no training for a whole day."

"That's the most glorious news I've heard in the past week," Alex sighed contentedly.

Her and Nya got to miss out on looking for the water kunoichi, but it hadn't been going well. Sensei had so many scrolls, and there were some he didn't even allow the boys to see. Jay had come back complaining one night when Sensei had ripped one right out of his hands.

The old man was cautious about his scrolls, so it was odd for him to treat one so roughly. Nya had tried pressing Jay, trying to get him to remember what it said.

"_Just the green ninja, I think. I only got it unrolled part of the way, but it looked like someone else was there, too. I was asking Sensei a question, and he just took it. I really don't know why."_

That was all the information he could give her. It frustrated Nya to no end, and she wished she could search with the boys. But she knew she had to train, and she had to help Alex train as well.

"Nya?" Alex's voice crashed through her thoughts, bringing her back to reality.

Nya blinked and looked over at Alex, who was staring at her, concerned. "I'm okay," Nya reassured her. "I'm just thinking about Sensei's secrecy lately."

"He hasn't always been like this?" Alex had never been around the old man before, so she hadn't seen him when he was normal.

Laughing, Nya shook her head. "He usually gives off the wise old man vibe, not the _crazy _old man vibe."

"Well, he doesn't seem _crazy," _Alex said, "but he does seem a bit… wound up."

Before Nya could respond, there was a knock at the door. The two girls shared a confused look, especially when harsh whispers were shared on the other side of the door.

Another knock on the door made Nya get up, legs shaking as she put her weight on them again. She strode over to the door and opened it.

Kai and Jay, in the midst of a whispered argument, turned to look at Nya. Their eyes were wide, like a pair of deer in headlights. They clearly hadn't prepared for… whatever they were trying to do.

Jay managed to shake off his surprise first. "Nya, can I speak with you, privately, for a moment?"

Nya stepped outside with him, pretending not to notice as Jay gave Kai a shove toward the door.

Or the glare that Kai gave Jay in return.

After seeing Kai in the doorway, Alex stood up from the bed. She took a few steps towards the door, trying to see what was happening.

"Alex…" Kai began before clearing his throat. "I was wondering if you would like to explore Ninjago City with me tomorrow?"

Alex gasped before grinning excitedly. "I'd love to! What time?"

He paused for a moment as he thought. "Would two o'clock work? We can have most of the afternoon, and the sun will go down around eight tonight."

"That's perfect!" Alex couldn't contain her giddiness. "I'll see you then!"

Kai smiled and nodded before turning back to the door, where Jay was waiting. The blue ninja had a grin as big as Alex's, so whatever he said to Nya had worked out. Alex could ask Nya about it as soon as the boys left.

The door closed behind them, and Nya turned to Alex. "Jay asked me on a date tomorrow!"

Alex knew now why Jay was so excited. It was clear he was head over heels for Nya, so another date with her was enough to bring that giddy, lovestruck look to his face.

But before she could ask Nya to tell her all about it, the other girl got a wicked gleam in her eye.

"Now… what are you and my brother doing tomorrow?"

…

"I don't know what to wear!"

Nya looked over from the bathroom to see Alex tearing through her suitcase full of clothes, trying to find something suitable for the day. It worried Nya to see Alex so frantic, especially when she had her own plans this evening.

"Does it matter?" Nya turned back to the mirror to hide her smile. She found Alex's anxiety cute, especially since they were just going around Ninjago City.

From the tone of her voice, Alex was not amused by Nya's question. "Of course! What if I've misinterpreted everything and this is a _nice _outing? What if I put on a t-shirt and shorts and he thinks I'm some sort of slob that should never go out in public? What if he looks all fancy and I look like I've just rolled out of bed?" Her voice rose as she spoke, her words getting faster and blurring together until she collapsed on the bed. "I can't do this."

With a sigh, Nya put down the earrings she was about to put on. She'd gotten all ready for her date, even if there was still a while to go before she met Jay. Somehow, she'd known something like this was bound to happen.

Nya stepped into their room and saw Alex laying on the bed, her head buried in a pillow. Hearing footsteps approaching, Alex looked up.

"You look nice," she mumbled into the pillow.

That was, of course, true. Jay had promised a nice dinner out, and Nya dressed accordingly. She wore a sapphire blue dress that hit just above the knees. It had a sweetheart neckline and was sleeveless, showing Nya's bare arms. In this late summer weather, Nya didn't mind it. She hadn't had the chance to put any makeup on yet, but Alex was more important right now.

Nya sat down on the edge of the bed. "Kai likes to dress casual on his days off, and he's not a very dressy guy anyway. Jay might get him to dress up a little, but all you really need to do is look nice and you'll be fine."

Alex rolled onto her back, looking up at Nya. "You sure?"

"I'm positive," Nya assured her.

Without further hesitation, Alex picked out a green tank top and jean shorts, knowing that wouldn't get her into too much trouble. Nya was finishing putting makeup on when someone knocked at the door.

"That's for you, Alex!"

Alex took a deep breath and opened the door to find Kai there, in a red shirt and jeans. To her relief, he didn't look fancy at all. Which helped her calm down immensely.

Instead of panicking, she smiled at Kai. "Bye, Nya! Thanks for the help!" Alex called back to her friend.

Nya yelled back a muffled reply from the bathroom before Alex closed the front door behind her.

"Where to?" Alex asked as she turned to face Kai.

Without Jay's help, Kai probably would have stuttered and faltered, since he wasn't really good at planning ahead. Luckily for him, Jay had walked him through what he should do.

He actually had a list in his back pocket if he forgot a step. Kai wasn't particularly proud of that part.

"Well, I figured we'd start at the city square and go from there. It's got a park we can walk around, and it's the center of the city, so we can branch out from there." The park was Kai's idea, and Jay had suggested he just start in the city square and move out into the city.

Alex beamed up at him, and he couldn't help but smile back. "That sounds great. But, uh…" She looked around, and Kai hadn't brought a vehicle of any kind with him. He'd probably walked over, especially since the ninja's apartment wasn't too far away. "How are we supposed to get there?"

Luckily for Kai, he still had the bus token that Sensei had 'gifted' them with. He brandished it as if it was a gold coin. "With this. It's not normally the best way to travel, but it's a real experience when you're new to the city."

"Well, I can't argue with reasoning like that," Alex said. "How far away is the bus stop, then?"

Kai shrugged and began walking, leaving Alex to follow alongside him. "Oh, it'll probably take five minutes at the most. I'm sorry for making you work on your day off," Kai teased, pausing to shoot her a grin.

The walk to the bus stop was filled with comfortable conversation as they both eased their nerves. True to his word, the bus stop was only a couple of minutes away. Jay had looked up the bus schedule for Kai, so Kai had been able to plan so the bus was there when they reached the station.

Alex climbed on as Kai used his bus token, choosing two open seats in the middle of the bus. She looked out the window as the bus began to take off, Kai sitting down next to her.

She wrinkled her nose and turned back to look at him. "What's that smell?"

He laughed. "Well, that's one of the downsides of the bus. Sometimes, it reeks of things you don't want to know the source of."

Alex looked a little traumatized by that, so Kai pointed out the window. "It's better to focus on what's out there."

Of course, Kai was right. Once she was able to forget about the fact that she was on a dirty bus, she was able to pay attention to the city around her. Tall buildings stretched up, higher than she'd ever seen before. Walking around were more people in her whole town! Alex had never seen anything this big and bright and beautiful.

Kai was beside her, watching her eyes light up as she pointed out things that caught her eye. She would ask what different places were called, and other times she was speechless. Since she was looking out the window, that gave him the opportunity to just look at her.

All too soon, the bus stopped by the city square. Kai tore his eyes away from Alex and cleared his throat.

"This is our stop," he told her.

Alex nodded and stood up, heading off the bus with him.

Kai grabbed his communicator out of his pocket. Jay had messaged him, wondering how it was going.

_Jay- Is it all going according to plan? Have you made it to the park yet?_

Kai rolled his eyes and typed out a message in return. _Just now. Shouldn't you be picking up my sister soon?_

_Jay- On my way. _

_Jay- Stick to the plan!_

Kai rolled his eyes and pocketed the communicator again. He couldn't believe he'd really accepted Jay's help and was going to follow the blue ninja's plan.

Alex caught the movement and looked up at him. "What was that?"

"Jay's keeping me updated on his date with Nya," Kai said. That wasn't exactly false, so he didn't have to worry about lying to her. "He's picking her up soon."

Kai's long strides were easily matched by Alex's. He was once again reminded that she was only slightly shorter than him.

"Do you know what their plan was?" Alex asked. "All I know is they're going to dinner."

Nodding, Kai headed over to the benches lining the park. Before he could suggest that they sit down, Alex gasped.

"A farmer's market?" she cried excitedly.

She was headed that way in an instant, leaving Kai staring after her. This wasn't the plan! They were supposed to go sit and talk on the bench, not visit the farmer's market! Had Jay even taken the farmer's market into account when he planned this?

A vendor offered Alex a sample of something, and she ate it delightedly. Kai felt himself soften as he watched her.

The communicator in his pocket buzzed again.

_Jay- I've picked up Nya. Everything going well?_

Kai sighed quietly, his eyes finding Alex again.

_Going off script. It's going great, check back in later._

The communicator was then silenced and shoved back in his pocket, where the piece of paper with Jay's plan written on it would stay.

Kai knew Jay would be frantically messaging him, but he instead caught up with Alex and decided the best plan was to have no plan.

…

Jay cursed at his communicator. Nya gave him a worried look, squeezing his hand in hers.

"Is everything alright, Jay?" she asked.

"I helped Kai plan for this date with Alex, and now he's going off-script!" Jay tightened his hand on the wheel of the car as he stressed. "How's he supposed to be able to do this? I had the _perfect _outing planned for them, and now he'll just mess it all up! I can't-" Jay paused in the middle of his rant, surprised. Nya was _laughing _at him!

Nya smiled at the talkative ninja. Her other hand rubbed his forearm reassuringly. "Jay, you know my brother. He's hotheaded, he's irrational, and he's spontaneous. He plays by ear, not by any list you set up for him. If Alex wants to see the town, he'll help her do it at their own pace."

That helped some, but Jay was still concerned. "But he said he's only dated like one girl before! That isn't much experience, and he was really nervous."

Luckily for Jay, Nya always knew the right thing to say. "It won't take much to calm him down. If we're both right and they like each other, which I suspect is true, then they'll find a way to have a good time and explore the city together."

Jay let out a sigh as he turned into the parking lot for where they were eating. "I guess you're right."

"Besides," Nya said, "you should be more focused on _our _date."

Chuckling, Jay gave Nya a sheepish grin. "For all my talking, you never cease to render me speechless."

The couple got out of the car and headed into the seafood place that Jay had picked for them. He'd been saving up for a nice date for a while now - he may or may not have kept some of the money from his job as a pizza deliverer. The guys didn't need to know that, though.

"That's a long line," Nya worried out loud. The line to get into the restaurant stretched outside and along the side of the building. "Are you sure this is where we should go?"

Jay wasn't a fool. He'd made sure to call ahead, and this was the only available time for a month. The restaurant did walk-ins as well, but you had to be there early to even have a chance at making it in.

"Relax," Jay reassured her. "I know what I'm doing."

So he took her hand and gently tugged her to the front of the line, where there was a weary host trying to write down names. She looked up at the young couple and offered a weak smile.

"Good evening. Do you have a reservation? If not, I'm afraid you'll have to go to the back of the line." The young woman bit her lip nervously, not wanting to deal with yet another angry couple that didn't get what they wanted.

Jay stepped forward. "It should be under Walker," he told the hostess.

Relieved, the woman looked him up in the list of reservations. "If you'll give me just a moment, another host should be here to take you to your table. I hope you enjoy your evening."

Jay and Nya stepped back to let the next couple try their hand at getting a table.

Nya turned to Jay and kissed him on the cheek. "This is wonderful, Jay! How did you afford this? You know I love seafood, but it's always so expensive!"

"Don't worry about it tonight," Jay promised. "I'll take care of it. Just get whatever your stomach decides sounds good. That's what I'll be doing."

Another host materialized behind them to take them to their table. "This way, please," he said as he grabbed two menus and headed into the dimly lit restaurant.

The young couple followed behind the host, hands entwined, as they prepared to have a wonderful dinner.

…

"What else is there to see?" Alex asked as she dragged Kai through the closing farmer's market. They'd managed to stay for so long that the sun was beginning to set.

Looking at the sky, Kai let out a curse that made a nearby mother scowl at him and cover her children's ears. Alex's eyes widened as she stared at him.

"There's one last thing!" Kai wasn't following Jay's list of places to go anymore, but part of the deal was that he'd take Alex to the top of Ninjago tower. She'd loved the farmer's market so much that they'd mainly just toured the park. "I'm so sorry we haven't visited anyplace else, but there's one place I _have _to take you!"

Alex tried to tell him that she was okay with it, that the city could wait for another day, but he'd already grabbed her hand and was leading her out of the park. She stared at their entwined hands instead of what was ahead, managing to miss their surroundings as they made their way into a nearby building.

"Where are we?" Alex asked as Kai punched a button on the elevator. He hadn't let go of her hand yet - which made it hard to ignore the butterflies trying to flutter in her stomach. 'Quit it!' she thought to herself. 'This isn't a date!'

Kai followed her gaze to their hands and slowly pulled his away. He coughed and turned his head so Alex couldn't see the faint blush gracing his cheeks. "Sorry about that," he said quietly. He coughed again, "And as for where we're going? You'll see in a minute."

"Kai, I can see the button you pushed. What's so special about the 74th floor? If we're going to the top, wouldn't the 75th be better?" Alex asked.

The numbers on the elevator climbed higher and higher as it rose to the 74th floor. Instead of answering, Kai just shrugged and stared at the doors with a smirk.

Alex sighed and rolled her eyes. They'd had such a great time at the farmer's market. There was so much food and she'd practically stuffed herself. Were you supposed to do that on a first date?

'This isn't a date!' she corrected herself again. She let out a soft sigh that made Kai look at her, and she smiled, hoping he wouldn't ask.

Luckily for her, the elevator dinged as it hit the second highest floor. What was up with that, anyway?

Kai got out first and led her to a door with a lock on it. He grabbed a key out of his pocket and made a show of unlocking and opening it before gesturing for her to go first.

Before going up the stairs, Alex rolled her eyes. "Did we go in an elevator just to climb stairs?"

"Just climb the stairs," Kai sassed back, trying not to give away the surprise.

She headed up the stairs, Kai close behind her, and he silently thanked Jay for getting him a key to the roof. The public wasn't generally allowed up here, but Jay had managed to get a key. How he'd managed that, Kai had no idea. His best guess was that Jay talked the ear off of some poor janitor until the janitor gave up the key in exchange for silence.

Yeah, that was probably it. He had no idea how his sister put up with the ninja of lightning.

Since there was only one more flight of stairs, it didn't take Alex long to reach the door at the top and open it. She immediately froze, and Kai hoped that was a good thing.

He came up behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. "The top floor doesn't have access to the roof," he murmured in her ear.

The sun was setting, which meant that Ninjago City was lighting up. Cars flew by in the streets below, and all the lampposts began to shine. Windows glimmered in every building around, and Alex's mouth fell agape as she tried to take it all in. She'd been able to hear the city at night, sure, but this was different. There were so many things going on, and all at once. It was hard to tell what exactly was going on from inside her and Nya's apartment.

Alex looked up to the darkening sky - and realized it wasn't getting very dark at all. Her brow furrowed as she searched for the stars that were always present in Shian Hills, but to her disappointment, the city lights were too strong.

Her sigh of dismay made Kai look at her worriedly. "Is this not a good surprise? I thought this would be perfect, especially since we stayed in the park the whole time." He clenched his fists, a sure sign that he was getting worked up.

With a smile, Alex tentatively grabbed his hand. He looked down at their hands in shock, even though they'd done it before when they got her katana.

"It's the perfect way to end today," Alex said quietly. She let go of his hand and sat down on the edge of the building, letting her feet dangle over the edge.

After a moment, she looked back at Kai, who was still just standing there. "Are you going to join me?" she asked with a teasing grin. "Or are you too chicken?"

Kai scoffed in indignation. "I'm not scared of anything." He walked over to the edge and sat down by her, ignoring how his heart rate sped up slightly.

With only a little bit of hesitation and mental preparation, he reached his hand over to Alex's. To his relief, she took it immediately.

They both stared down into the city as the sun disappeared below the horizon and the brilliant reds and oranges slipped away, turning the sky shades of blue. Alex looked up at Kai with a sly smile.

"You know, I don't believe you," Alex told Kai. She turned back to the city without waiting for a response.

Kai wracked his brain to try and figure out what she was talking about. "Uh… what?"

"I don't believe you," Alex said simply. "I don't believe that you aren't scared of anything. Besides, wasn't that Cole's tagline?" Nya had told her all about how Cole used to be terrified of dragons, and boy did Alex wish she'd been there to see that.

Instead of asking how she could have known about that, since the obvious answer was Nya, Kai said, "Sure, but that's all in the past now. A lot has changed."

And things were still changing. The city below them didn't know that things were about to get interesting…

…

Jay was having the best night. Dinner had gone amazingly, and he'd forgotten all about Kai and how he was probably butchering his outing with Alex. Though now that it crossed his mind, he was getting worried again.

"Jay?" Nya's voice was soft and smooth. It was like music to Jay's ears, and if she'd let him, he would make poetry for her all day.

Yes, he was _that _cheesy.

Yes, no one else liked it.

No, he didn't care.

Nya chuckled beside him. "Are you still worried about Kai? I told you, he's fine."

Taking in a deep breath, Jay shook his head and reached across the table to grab Nya's hand. Their plates had been cleared away, and the waiter had dropped off the bill.

"Actually, I was lost in your eyes," Jay said sweetly. It was mostly true, he loved staring into her dark eyes, especially when he could see her affection for him in them.

Nya covered her blush with a hand as she giggled. "Jay, you're so sweet," she told him with a smile.

She watched as his smile slowly slipped away as he sobered. She cocked her head to the side, wondering what he was thinking about now.

He squeezed her hand gently. "Nya, tonight has been wonderful, and I hope we do something like this more often."

"I agree completely," Nya grinned. They weren't exactly official yet, but their feelings for each other weren't a secret. She liked Jay - she _really _liked him.

"Nya," Jay took a breath, "will you officially be my girlfriend?"

A wide grin almost split her face in half. "Of course, Jay. You know, I've-"

"I'm not done yet," Jay cut her off. He looked nervous as he began to ramble. "Nya, we haven't really been official yet, but I've known you for a while, and it's just that you're the strongest and most beautiful girl I've ever met. We have things in common like a shared love of blue and inventing, but we also complement each other, like how I always talk and you always know exactly what to say to calm me down-"

"Jay, what are you trying to say?" Nya said softly. She knew he wouldn't mind her cutting him off, since he could end up rambling for who knows how long if she didn't.

He nodded and took in a deep breath. "Nya… I love you."

Nya froze. That certainly hadn't been what she was expecting. This was their first date since the time Jay turned into a snake. And… it had been great. They'd had some moments since then, but this was the first real date.

So what were her feelings?

Jay clearly had strong feelings for her, but she'd always known that. After a short mental debate, Nya only had one thing to say back to her boyfriend.

"Jay, I love you too."

The goofy smile that overcame Jay's face was worth every word, and she'd be happy to keep telling him that phrase as long as their relationship lasted.

Jay paid the bill and they headed back to Nya and Alex's apartment, talking eagerly about their latest projects and inventions. The sun had been set for an hour or so by that point, and Nya couldn't see a light under the front door to their apartment, meaning Alex still wasn't home.

Nya looked up at her boyfriend for a long moment, and he smiled down at her. Her heart fluttered as she looked into his warm blue eyes. He leaned down, putting his hands on her waist.

Her arms wrapped around his neck as their lips touched for the first time. This wasn't anything like the chaste kiss she had pressed to his cheek on their first date. This was so much more than that, and they were both swept away in the sensation of their first kiss.

After only a moment, Jay leaned back and just looked into Nya's eyes. "I love you," he told her again.

"I love you too," she said with a smile as she went to kiss Jay again.

"Hey lovebirds, quit sucking face," a familiar voice laughed. "Ow, Alex, what was that for?"

Nya turned to see that Kai and Alex had returned, the former rubbing his arm where Alex had hit it.

"Do you need to be a jerk all the time?" Alex rolled her eyes. "We literally just got back."

Jay and Nya were both blushing furiously as they looked at the pair that interrupted them. Jay seemed at a loss for words, glancing back and forth between Nya and Kai, his mouth gaping like a fish trying to breath out of the water.

Alex stepped forward to take control of the situation. "Kai, just take Jay and go home without doing anything stupid. I think Nya and I have a _lot _to talk about."

…

Zane closed his eyes to connect his mind to the falcon's. After a moment, he could see what the falcon was seeing. It was their day off, but he couldn't help but check in. Technically since the sun had gone down, it wasn't daytime anymore.

The falcon was soaring by the ocean, and there was someone surfing in the water. The small figure caught a wave and rode it for a while before getting knocked off into the water. Once he saw the figure surface again, he saw her brush her hair out of her face. It was too dark for anyone to be out surfing, so he wondered what this girl was doing.

Before he could think too much about it, movement on the beach caught his eye.

Zane felt his motors pause as fear rippled through him. Those weren't humans on the beach… those were snakes.

'How did they know where the next kunoichi could be?' Zane wondered as he disconnected himself from the falcon and found himself back in their tiny apartment.

"Zane, what is it?" Cole asked sleepily from his bed.

The ninja of ice was sitting straight up in bed, his icy blue eyes wide. He turned and looked at Cole, who had rolled onto his side to look at Zane.

"Garmadon knows where the kunoichi of water is."

**DUN DUN DUNNNNNN**

**A bit of a suspenseful ending there! Garmadon is racing to find the next kunoichi before the ninja can, and it looks like this time he has a head start! Next chapter you'll get the first look at the next kunoichi. In case you hadn't already figured it out, our next leading ninja is Zane! He'll be in the spotlight with the next kunoichi for a few chapters until the kunoichi of nature shows up. **

**But can I get an awwwwwwww? Wasn't this just an adorable chapter? It took a few turns even I didn't expect as these characters told ME what they wanted to go out and do! Jay and Nya have confessed their feelings, and Kai and Alex are drifting closer... **

**I should be back with an update next week, so I'll see you then! Please read and REVIEW!**


	10. By the Sea

**Yay, yay, YAY! We're about to meet a new kunoichi! But this time, the snakes have the upper hand... or do they? The ninja will have to race to find the kunoichi of water, unless the snakes have already found her. **

**A lot of this town/the kunoichi of water is loosely based on Hawaiian culture. I will admit I didn't do a lot of research, mainly just names and inspiration. It's LOOSELY based, since this is Ninjago and not the US. I think there's differing cultures all around Ninjago, and this is my take on one of them. **

**Anyway, please enjoy the chapter! We're beginning the mini-arc for the water kunoichi, so I hope you like her!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago.**

After a restless night of sleep, the ninjas and kunoichi were headed to Ka Nalu to find the kunoichi of water. After waking up before dawn, they'd blearily gotten ready and headed out to the fields where Nya and Alex normally trained their powers to call their dragons.

Cole, Alex, and Nya all drank at least one cup of coffee, since they would be flying the three dragons. Lloyd didn't have the experience to fly the dragon himself, and the other ninjas were skeptical of his ability to stay awake the whole trip. Cole had practically carried the boy out of the city, so the ninja's skepticism was well-placed.

They all got in a group before heading out so Sensei could go over their plan.

"As you know, my students, we are running low on time. With the Serpentine being spotted in the town last night, they have a head start on us. It'll be a few hours before we arrive, and we will have to move fast." Sensei Wu was dead serious as he spoke, knowing the water kunoichi was in danger. They didn't know what Garmadon had in store for her.

"Cole and Lloyd, you will be on the perimeter of town acting as our eyes. Garmadon will know we're coming, and we can't put Lloyd be in danger, so be on the lookout and relay back to us what you see," Sensei told them.

Cole nodded seriously, Lloyd still passed out in his arms. He wanted to get in on the action, but he also knew that as the leader of the ninja, he couldn't talk back to Sensei. Besides, the green ninja was their future, keeping him safe was a priority.

Sensei paired the rest of them off quickly. Kai and Alex were going to wander the town asking about the waterfall, Jay and Nya would take the town as well, but in search for the kunoichi. Zane and Sensei were searching the beach.

The Ultra Dragon, Dusk, and Nyx all landed on the field. Jay and Nya immediately headed for Dusk, giggling to each other as if Cupid had shot them with an arrow last night.

Alex headed over to Nya, stroking the dragon's pure black scales. "I'm sorry I've been busy, Nyx," she murmured softly.

A puff of smoke shot out of the dragon's nostrils, like it was scoffing at her. If a dragon could look indignant, the look Nyx was giving Alex now certainly fit the bill.

"She needs to stretch her wings more," a voice said behind her.

Alex whirled to see Kai standing behind her, the ever-present smirk on his face more smug than normal. His arms were crossed over his chest, and he wore a tank top in his signature color that showed off his muscled arms. For a brief moment, she wondered exactly _how _strong he was from all that training.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "She's been able to fly around whenever she wants, though. Shouldn't she be able to stretch her wings herself?"

"Theoretically, yes," Kai said. "But she's not just flying around all the time on her own. She's not going on big trips like this every day." He moved along her dragon, waiting for her to get on first.

Alex hopped on, Kai getting on behind her. She felt him wrap his arms around her waist and briefly flashed back to last night on the rooftop. It had been magical in a way she hadn't expected. They weren't romantically involved after one night, neither of them were ready for that. But Alex had enjoyed getting close to someone like that again. Between Nya, Lloyd, and Kai, she was really beginning to believe she might fit in here.

The dragons took off together, Cole and the Ultra Dragon leading the way, Kai and Alex in the middle, and Jay and Nya trailing behind them all, giggling and whispering to each other the whole time. The ride was long, and everyone except Jay and Nya rode in near silence.

They landed outside of Ka Nalu, and Alex could see the waterfall where the next silver weapon was. The pounding water sent up sprays of mist where it landed against the rocks, and Alex knew the only person that would get to the other side of the waterfall was the kunoichi of water. Hopefully it wouldn't be as terrifying as getting her silver weapon. Watching everyone leave her behind for something only they could see was an experience she would rather not repeat.

"Alex, are you ready?" Kai asked from the ground.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts again, shoving those worries into the back of her mind. She then realized that she was still sitting on the dragon and hopped off.

"Yeah," she grinned at him. "Let's go learn about a waterfall."

…

Jay and Nya strolled down the streets of Ka Nalu, taking in the bustling marketplace. Kai and Alex were looking in the neighborhoods and houses, trying to learn more about the waterfall, as some kids might have heard it as a bedtime story. The information online wasn't very descriptive, and Sensei Wu was hoping that the people who lived here would be able to shed more light on the legend.

The two walked hand in hand, and occasionally Jay swung their hands back and forth excitedly. It made Nya laugh every time, and since that was one of Jay's favorite sounds, he kept doing it with a silly grin on his face.

The two of them walked through a downtown area, with fishermen running all over the streets, and a few merchants with stalls set up in front of vacant storefronts. An antique store caught Nya's eye, and she pointed it out to Jay. He looked at it and nodded before they quickly dodged between people in the street, safely making it over to the shop. If anyone could tell them more about a legend, it might be someone that runs an antique store.

A bell jingled overhead as they entered the store, taking in the various artifacts. One glass cabinet was full of dishes and silverware, each piece different. There was one full set on a shelf that had finely detailed flowers painted on it. Nya admired it for a moment, pausing in the doorway.

"Can I help you with something?" The voice came from across the store, and Jay and Nya both jumped and tried to find the source.

Furniture took up the middle of the room, some of it piled so high that it touched the ceiling. Jay and Nya started around the side, looking at the items around the room. Nya saw old pictures and cameras, some in frames and some loose on tables. There were several bookshelves full of books, and Nya couldn't even read the titles on the spines of some of the books.

Near the back of the store, there was a middle-aged man standing at a cash register. He had a long beard, and wrinkles all around his eyes. He smiled kindly at the two of them.

"Lookin' for something special?" he asked in a jolly tone. His voice was kind and warm, making both of them relax slightly.

Nya stepped forward. "We're here to ask about the waterfall right outside of the town. We've heard a few things, but we wanted to know if you had any more details for us."

The man nodded slowly and came out from behind the counter, heading over to one of the bookshelves. He looked through the books, eventually pulling out a blue one with silver lettering on the spine. Brushing a thin layer of dust off, he handed it to Nya with a wink.

"If you have any questions, you know where to find me. And feel free to look around, there are a few _treasures _hidden in a place like this," the man said. With that, he turned and went back to the counter.

"That was… strange," Jay commented a little too loudly.

"Sh!" Nya hissed, dragging him over to a couple of the chairs. She pushed him into one and opened the book, sitting in the one next to him. The chair creaked under her, making her cringe a little.

Next to her, Jay shifted in his chair to make it creak as well. One of the legs on his chair was uneven, so he began to wobble it back and forth until Nya smacked him. He let out a small yelp and rubbed his arm.

She cracked open in the book, noting that it was a book of old legends. She looked over at Jay, who was peering over her shoulder.

"Jay, would you mind looking around the store? If the guy said there were treasures here, he might have something specific in mind. Try to find something that could help us." She gave him a soft smile, knowing they needed to work quickly, and it might take her a few minutes to find what they were looking for in the book.

Jay nodded and pecked her on the cheek before standing up and looking around. Nya turned back to the book and flipped through it, focusing on the tale of the waterfall.

When she found it, the first thing she noticed was that there were pictures to go along with it. She looked at the god of water, who commanded the element with a whip. She instantly knew that he was holding the silver weapon they were looking for. According to the book, the god of water hid it in the cave to prevent its power from being abused, and then created a waterfall to hide his treasure from the world. No one would ever be able to get to it unless they had the blessing of the water god himself, and if the whip's power was ever used for evil, it would be destroyed.

Nya stood up and reached into her pocket to grab the little bit of money she brought with her. Something told her they'd need the book later on.

She went up to the counter and put the book and some money on the counter. "I'd like to buy this book, please."

The man nodded with a smile. "Of course. Is that-"

Jay ran up and slammed some money down on the counter, holding something in his other hand. "We want this as well."

Nya looked over at what he was holding. It looked like he was holding a normal compass. She raised an eyebrow at Jay, who shook his head to say he'd explain later.

The man's grin grew further. "That's a wise decision, I'm sure of it." He happily took their money and disappeared to the back, leaving them alone in the store.

"Jay, what is that thing?" Nya asked, grabbing it. She moved around, but the needle remained fixed in one place. "Jay, this compass doesn't even work."

Jay took her hands in his. "That's what I thought, too, until…" He turned the compass over, showing her the inscription on the back.

_To find whatever it is you seek._

"You got a compass that doesn't work because it had a weird, ominous riddle on the back?" Nya asked incredulously, pressing it back into his hand.

Jay sighed. "Just trust me on this one, Nya."

Nya could tell that she'd hurt his feelings a bit, so she grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm sorry, Jay. I'm sure you're right."

Just then, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She noticed it was a message from Sensei, and looked up at Jay. "We've gotta go! Zane found the kunoichi of water!"

…

The sun shone hot and bright on Zane as he surveyed the beach. It was so hot that he could see heat waves radiating up from the sand, and he was lucky that his optics could filter the blinding light of the sun reflecting off the waves. The water was clear and blue, and he felt so far out of his element. When he had his golden weapon, he could've frozen the whole ocean in front of him. Without it, he'd be lucky to conjure a few snowflakes in this heat.

Heaving a sigh, Zane turned to look at the ocean, watching as a few surfers rode waves back to shore. There was a small group of surfers together, cheering as their friends surfed. One fell off his board, and the other kids laughed and patted his back as he trudged back to shore. The group dynamic was enticing, and Zane kept finding himself staring at them. They were all equals, laughing and joking with each other. He felt a pang of loneliness and longing before shaking his head and continuing down the beach.

The waves crashed against rocks at the end of the beach, and Zane caught a brief glimpse of Sensei Wu at the other end of the beach, his long white beard blowing in the wind. Zane looked up to see the falcon circling the sky, and he entered falcon vision mode.

From up high, he could see himself down on the ground, momentarily frozen. He took control of the falcon, searching for someone on the edge but still near the water. The falcon flew over to the rocks and saw a girl hidden behind them, her knees pulled to her chest as she stared at the water. Zane took in her dark curly hair and remembered the surfer that the falcon had spotted the night before.

He blinked and was in his body again. He looked down the beach to Sensei Wu, who made eye contact with him and nodded.

Zane crept over to the rocks, not wanting to startle the girl. If he was right, then she'd be emotional and artistic, but he hadn't imagined her as withdrawn. Nevertheless, this girl seemed right.

His foot slipped on a slick rock, and Zane heard the girl shift in surprise. "Hello…?" she asked softly.

"Hello," Zane said in return. "My name is Zane, what's your name?"

He kept moving around the rocks, keeping a firm grip so he wouldn't slip again. She began to come into view, and he felt a spark of something, which shocked him momentarily. Zane got up beside her gently, trying not to startle her.

She turned to look at him, her features soft and gentle. To his surprise, she looked as if she'd be rather tall when she stood up. Her skin was the color of a fawn, and she was clearly used to being out in the sun often. Her hair was dark, though the sun had given it highlights, and the curls fell to the middle of her back and framed her face. Everything about her looked strong, but Zane could see insecurity behind her deep brown eyes.

The girl looked him up and down as well, biting her lip as she looked into his eyes before glancing away quickly. Zane gave her a reassuring smile to calm her.

Finally deciding that he wasn't an immediate threat, she sighed softly. "I'm Mira," she said as she picked at the frayed ends of her denim shorts.

"That means ocean," Zane said as the meaning flashed across his vision.

Mira blinked and her brow furrowed. "Yeah," she said, staying quiet. Her eyes darted away to look at the ocean.

He followed her gaze, seeing a surfer that had gotten away from the group. "Do you surf?" he asked, already suspecting the answer.

Mira nodded, her curls bouncing. "I like surfing at the end of the day best."

His mind whirred for a moment, filtering through data. "Isn't it dangerous to out as it gets dark? Do you usually do that?"

Mira flushed lightly and began to twirl a curl around her finger. "It should be, but I've never even felt a riptide. Actually, I-" she paused and shook her head. "Nevermind."

He watched her gently. "Do you feel like the ocean is trying to protect you? Like when you go out too far, something pulls you back in?" His voice was confident as he spoke, he knew exactly what she was trying to say.

Startled, she looked over at him again. "That's-that's exactly it."

Zane offered her a smile, and this time she returned it.

"If you would like answers, I can lead you to someone that can answer any questions you have. He is just up the beach, so you do not need to worry about anything bad happening to you."

She bit her lip and shook her head, standing up slowly. "I'm sorry, I really think I should be getting home now." She edged around him, her feet easily gripping the rocks.

Zane jumped up to follow her. "Please, just for a few minutes."

Mira disappeared behind the rocks, much faster than him. Zane tried to catch up to her, but his feet kept slipping on the rocks. The sand under his feet was a relief as he paused for a moment to regain his balance.

"Who are you?" Mira's voice was nervous. She took a few steps back, entering Zane's sight again.

Around the corner, Nya and Alex were smiling pleasantly at the girl. Zane saw Kai and Jay down the beach with Sensei, who had contacted them when Zane found the next kunoichi.

"I'm Nya, and this is Alex. We're kunoichi that are going to fight alongside the ninja to save Ninjago, and we think you're one of us." Nya was confident and polite as she spoke, trying to soothe the girl in front of her.

Mira stared blankly at them and crossed her arms over her chest. "What does that have to do with me?"

Alex took a step towards the girl, which made Mira take a step back. Zane quickly sidestepped so she wouldn't back into him. She heard him behind her and took a step away from him as well.

"Have you heard of Ikaika Falls?" Alex asked, watching the girl with a strange look on her face.

Mira raised a skeptical eyebrow. "_Everyone _here has heard of Ikaika Falls," she said.

Alex chuckled slightly at her wording and changed the question. "So, do you know about the weapon hidden inside the cave behind the waterfall?"

Mira nodded slowly, retreating back into herself. "That's only a legend, though."

Zane could see how she wanted to escape their attention and leave, and he knew she'd take some convincing to join them.

"The pounding water makes it impossible for anyone to pass through the waterfall," Zane began, thinking back to the story he'd researched only yesterday. "What if I told you that there _is _a weapon back there, and that I think you're meant to retrieve it?"

The girl shook her head quickly, curls flying everywhere as she began walking away. "You're all crazy."

With that, she turned her back on them and walked away. Zane wanted to run after her, beg her to join them, but the logical side of his mind told him that they'd need a lot of convincing to get this girl on their side.

"Well, I don't think it's her," Alex said, turning to Nya. "I can't imagine a kunoichi being so… I don't know, shy?"

Nya laughed and shook her head. "I have to admit, I think you got it wrong too, Zane. She doesn't seem like she'd be willing to leave and join us in saving Ninjago."

Zane frowned at both of them. "Water is known as a "weaker" element, so her shyness fits that. She was just approached by three strangers trying to convince her to believe in a legend that she has known all her life to be just a story. Water is creative and emotional-"

"Zane, she seemed pretty closed off to me," Alex said, trying to placate the rambling ninja.

Heaving a sigh, Zane turned to where she disappeared, watching as she headed up a sand dune, back into town. "Trust me. It is her."

…

Lloyd and Cole sat up by the top of the waterfall, tired of wandering around the town. It would have been a bit of a hike, but Cole helped Lloyd fly them up on the Ultra Dragon, which was now passed out beside them. All four heads breathed slowly, puffs of smoke coming out of Flame's nostrils. Cole longingly looked at Rocky, remembering when he had a dragon that was his own.

"Everything's changing, Cole," Lloyd mumbled beside him. The boy's normally bright green eyes had dimmed as he stared out into the town.

Cole heaved a sigh and leaned back on his elbows. He could see tiny figures running around on the beach, tossing frisbees and surfing. He remembered a time when he'd love nothing more than to join them, to be able to do something simply because it was fun.

Not that the kid had it any easier, of course. He had to stand up to his own father someday. Cole and the other guys were older when Sensei found them, and Lloyd was still a kid.

"I'm afraid it looks like other guys are changing too," Cole told the boy. "There's a new dynamic."

Lloyd made a face at that and changed the topic. "Do you think we'll ever get the Bounty back?"

Cole laughed, thinking about their old ship for the first time in a while. "Well, it is _Destiny's _Bounty, so I'd say destiny will bring her back to us eventually."

Neither of them laughed at his bad joke. They simply stared out at the town. Cole grabbed a set of binoculars and trained them on the beach, seeing that everyone else had congregated there.

"It looks like something's wrong," Cole said, motioning to the other set of binoculars for Lloyd. "I can't tell what's happening, but they're all arguing and Kai's doing the thing where he gestures wildly like he's mad."

After hearing that, Lloyd flailed toward the binoculars and pressed them to his face. "Where are they?" He looked around for the ninja, but without their gear he couldn't find them as easily. "Oh, hey-"

Cole heard Lloyd pause and turned to look at him. The boy's face paled, and something flashed through his eyes. "Lloyd?"

Lloyd bolted to his feet, standing on the edge of the waterfall. "I found snakes. They're headed toward town, it looks like they're following someone."

Grabbing his phone, Cole punched in Zane's number. It rang a few times before Zane answered.

"Hello? What-" Zane hardly had the chance to speak before Cole cut him off.

"Get into town. Lloyd spotted Serpentine," Cole ordered sharply, continuing to peer into his own binoculars. He scanned the town, and his heart stopped. "Shoot - Zane, there's two groups. They're converging on a girl, and I don't think she sees them yet."

"Curly brown hair?" Zane asked, and Cole heard a hint of desperation in his voice.

Cole kept his eyes on the girl, who was almost to a house on the edge of town. "Looks like it."

Zane made a strangled noise and spoke frantically to the rest of the team. He must've muffled the speaker, as Cole couldn't tell what he was saying.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" Cole asked, and Lloyd looked over at him. They shared a concerned glance.

It took a moment for Zane to come back. His voice was steady, but Cole could only assume it was because of his robotic nature. There was faint panting in the background, likely from the group rushing to confront the Serpentine.

"It's her," Zane said. "They've found the kunoichi of water."

…

Mira had plugged her earbuds into her phone as soon as she left the beach. If she was listening to music, no one tried to talk to her when she passed by. This was a small town, where everyone knew everyone else. The lack of privacy was stifling, and after her weird encounter with the guy and his friends before, she wasn't in any mood to talk to anyone else.

If she had it her way, she wouldn't have been dragged into a conversation with him, anyway. She didn't like talking to people, and certainly not odd, attractive strangers who had guessed one of her best-kept secrets.

It was an odd thing to admit to herself, really. The fact that the ocean that had battered some of her friends while they were surfing never seemed to affect her in the same way. She'd always been an avid surfer, and when she was younger she went out with friends and they held their own competitions. When she always won because the ocean could never seem to drag her under, the other kids began to push her out of their group until she had no one left.

Mira felt something run down her face and realized she'd begun to cry. She brushed it away quickly and changed her song to a peppier one, trying to suppress the memories again.

She looked up to see that she was almost home and pulled the key out of her pocket. Her parents wouldn't be home yet, so she slipped the key in the lock, unlocking the door and opening it. She pulled one earbud out of her ear and froze before going in her house.

Mira could've sworn she'd heard hissing, so she looked around her house, seeing nothing. With a shrug, she went in and shut the door behind her. She headed into her kitchen, throwing her keys on the counter.

"Well, well, well…" she heard behind her.

With a gasp, Mira whirled to see a trio of snakes in her kitchen. A black one with a tail and a staff was in the lead, flanked by two other serpentine with legs.

Mira backed up fearfully, gasping when her back hit the counter behind her. She was too afraid to speak, and simply stared wide-eyed at the creatures in front of her.

Skalidor hissed at the terrified human girl in front of him. He was disgusted - was this really the kunoichi of water they were after? He sneered, then grinned as she trembled.

"Ssso thisss is the kunoichi of water," he said to the other snakes. "I'm not impressssssed, are you?" he asked them, chuckling as they shook their heads.

"Unfortunately, we need you, no matter how… ussselesssss you seem," Skalidor said with disdain. His forked tongue flicked out, and the girl flinched at the sight of it. "Don't worry… I'm sssure nothing _too _terrible will happen to you."

**Ohhhhh snap! Looks like the ninja found her first, but the snakes got to her first. Skalidor is the leader of the Constrictai, so I wonder where Mira will end up next chapter...**

**Garmadon in this story is going to be a lot more of a threat, at least for a while. He might get shipped off to the Dark Island at the same time, I'm not entirely sure yet. But for now, he wants the kunoichi on his side. As you can tell, he's willing to do whatever it takes to get them. Buuut, he's also dealing with the snakes, who are missing both of their leaders right now. (Fun fact, Skalidor was originally going to be Skales, but I remembered that Skales is in jail right now and had to go back and fix it.)**

**Please, please, please leave a review! I appreciate any feedback I can get!**


	11. Time to Fight Back

**I'm baaaack!**

**Yeah, so it's been a couple of weeks again. I've been really stuck on the same chapter, even though I know exactly how I want it to go. Writing really is like that sometimes, isn't it?**

**Anyway, we last left Mira stuck with a bunch of snakes. Hopeless situation, right? Well, we'll see...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

Zane turned away from Mira's now-empty house, shaking his head. After getting the location from Cole, they'd all raced over to try and get Mira before the snakes could, but they were too late. Cole and Lloyd were still stationed on top of the waterfall just in case they took Mira to get the whip first, and the rest of them were to watch out for Garmadon's ship.

Kai let out a yell of rage and punched the side of Mira's house. The others turned to stare at him.

"What was that for, Kai?" Alex was the first to go over to him. She appeared to be more angry than sympathetic as she grabbed it to look at it. She sighed, "You've broken the skin."

He tugged his hand away, frustrated. "I'm fine, but that girl isn't. They've taken her, and we have to find her before they corrupt her." He stomped away from the house, leaving a bewildered Alex behind him.

Chuckling awkwardly beside Nya, Jay said, "I think it'd be pretty hard to willingly side with the Serpentine."

Nya shushed him, elbowing him gently. "Maybe so, but if they get her to Garmadon, that's a whole different story." She played with a ring on her finger, twisting it around. "He can be persuasive, and to the public eye, he's sort of a saviour."

Off to the side, Kai was pacing and quietly muttering to himself. Zane, Alex, Jay, and Nya were all clustered together in front of Mira's house. Sensei Wu was sitting on her front stoop, sipping a cup of tea.

"Sensei, what are we supposed to do?" Alex asked, looking at the old man. "I mean, we can't just let them take her."

Unnoticed by the others, Zane had frozen in place, using his falcon vision to try and locate Mira. The falcon flew over the whole town, but to Zane's disappointment, he couldn't spot the Serpentine at all. He kept searching, hoping to find something.

Nya gasped and grabbed Jay's hand, dragging him back into Mira's house, slipping past Sensei. Alex looked after them as they left her with Zane. She took a look at the ice ninja beside her, whose crystal eyes were staring blankly into the distance, and went over to Kai, who was still muttering to himself.

"Kai?" Alex asked gently. "Are you alright?"

He let out a loud sigh, stopping in place and crossing his arms. "No, I'm not fine. We found her, and Garmadon got her anyway. That guy is the worst," he muttered angrily.

Alex heard the underlying frustration as he talked. "Do you… have some kind of vendetta against him?" She'd only seen the guy once, and sure he was creepy, but she didn't know much about him.

Kai glared at her, but she could tell the glare wasn't really meant for her. "We have a bit of a history, I guess."

She chuckled softly. "Is it just because he stole your golden weapon?"

"If only," he said. "He also-"

"I know why we can't find Garmadon," Nya called from the front door of Mira's house. "They must've had Constrictai with them, there are holes out back where they escaped. We can't find them because they're _underground."_

Zane shook his head, getting out of falcon vision. "If they are underground, then where are they going?"

Sensei stood up and put away his tea. "That's what I feared." He shook his head slowly. "Fortunately, there's magic preventing the Constrictai from digging into the cave behind the waterfall. The only way in is through the water, so we'll get the chance to get Mira back."

"There's no way Garmadon would leave without the silver weapon," Kai said hotly, returning with Alex to the group. She raised an eyebrow at him, but he just shook his head.

"Kai's right," Zane confirmed. "Our best course of action would be to watch the waterfall, and as soon as Mira is sent inside to get her weapon, we can take on the snakes."

All murmuring in agreement, Kai whipped out his phone and called Cole. "Hey, we're headed to the waterfall. Is there any place to hide out over there without being seen? … No, Cole, on the ground… Okay, thanks. We'll be there in a few." He hung up the phone and turned back to everyone with a grin.

"Good news, there's a lot of bushes and trees right by the waterfall, so a few of us can hide out there," Kai recounted. "There's also an abandoned house, where the rest of us can fit."

Sensei nodded. "Wonderful. Whoever takes the waterfall can try to talk to Mira before she goes to get her weapon. She'll have to swim to get to the waterfall itself, and the snakes won't be able to follow her. Then we will be able to attack the snakes as soon as she's gone through."

"I think Alex and I should be by the waterfall," Nya said, stepping forward. She turned to look at Alex, who nodded back at her. "Hopefully she'll find us less threatening than the rest of you."

Before Sensei could respond, Zane cut in. "I want to be there as well."

With a smirk hidden by his beard, Sensei nodded. "As the ninja of ice, you have a close relationship with water. It would be wise for you to try and speak to her."

Sharing a glance, Nya and Alex agreed with Sensei's plan. "I'm sure we'll be able to get her back." Nya was confident as she spoke, and Sensei knew that she'd be perfect as the leader of the kunoichi. Just like Cole, she seemed to have a way with the team.

"Very well," Sensei said. "We should head over. Remember, we'll need to be prepared for anything."

…

Mira cowered in the corner as the snakes that had taken her tried to figure out what they were going to do with her. The one with a tail had dragged her outside, where several dark snakes had then dragged her underground. They were now in an underground cave, and she could hardly see. There was only a little light from the tunnels they'd dug. The snakes weren't bothered. She assumed that they could see in the dark.

She squinted, desperately trying to see anything besides vague shapes slithering around, but she saw nothing. Mira hugged her knees to her chest in an attempt to make herself smaller. She could tell the snakes were talking about her, but the hissing didn't make any sense in her distressed state.

Her eyes fluttered shut as she began to twirl her hair between her fingers. She breathed in and out slowly in an attempt to calm down. Mira felt a tear slip down her cheek, and she sniffled softly, trying to stay in control of her emotions.

The hissing stopped, and Mira tensed as she heard scales against the dirt, coming closer to her. A soft whimper escaped her mouth, and she pressed herself against the wall as tightly as she could.

"What'sss wrong?" The voice talking to her was raspy. It made her cringe and duck her head as she felt the snake lean in. He didn't wait for a response before saying, "I need you to do sssomething."

She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Mira gasped as she felt the snake's hand move her hair away from her face. "What - what do you want?" Her voice shook as she spoke, undermining her brief moment of bravery.

"You're going to run a little… errand for usssss." The snake's voice was menacing, hissing every time he spoke an s.

Mira shivered as if she could feel his tongue on her skin. His face was still too close for comfort, making her uncomfortable. She didn't respond this time, choosing to keep quiet instead.

The snake straightened up as he began talking again. "I'm ssssure you're aware of that sssilly waterfall outssssside of this pathetic little town, correct?" His tone was even, as if he wasn't even aware of the fact that he was insulting the place where Mira had spent her whole life.

Mira frowned. Why was everyone so obsessed with her and that waterfall today? She'd gone and visited it once, hearing that there was a legendary treasure hidden behind it, but when she looked inside, there was just a pool of water, no treasure to be seen.

When he didn't get a response, the snake grabbed Mira's arm and hauled her up roughly. "Did you not hear me?" he hissed in her face, taking delight in the terrified squeak that came out of her mouth. "You know the waterfall, yesss?"

"Y-yes," Mira stammered. "With the treasure?"

A cruel smile lifted the corners of the snake's mouth. "You're going to go in and get whatever issss in there, undersssstand?" The underlying message was that if she _didn't _understand, she'd pay.

"I under - I understand," Mira whispered, hating how weak and frail she sounded. If she had the courage to stand up for herself she would, but for now she just wanted to get away from these snakes. If getting into that cave behind the waterfall got her away from them, then she'd do it.

Two more fuzzy shapes burst into the cave, coming from one of the walls this time. Mira squinted to try and see them, but her sight was still very limited.

"Skalidor, we can't get behind the waterfall. We're blocked by sssomething, and it won't let usss in," one of the new snakes said.

The one holding Mira, who she assumed was Skalidor, let her go. He whirled on the other snakes and began angrily hissing at them. "What do you mean, you can't get in? The ninjasss might be onto ussss by now, we can't rissssk going out and getting caught." He turned and hissed to himself. "If Skales wasss here, we wouldn't have thisss problem."

Mira crept back to the wall, leaning against it as the snakes began yelling over each other. Her hands went to cover her ears in an attempt to block out the hissing.

"Target the girlssss," Skalidor called out over the clamor of voices. "They have the leasssst amount of training, and the ninjasss will do anything to protect them. Drag them underground if you can."

Mira felt her heart skip a beat as he talked about the ninja and whatever girls they were with. Was that who talked to her earlier? She hadn't given them a chance to explain themselves further, but she'd rather be stuck with human strangers than snakes. If she'd just agreed to talk, maybe she wouldn't be here, stuck underground with a bunch of crazy snakes obsessed with a legend.

She yelped as Skalidor grabbed her arm again, thrusting her towards one of the other snakes. She knew in an instant that they were going to be leaving for the waterfall and she'd have to suffer their tunneling again. Hopefully those ninjas would be able to help her escape.

…

When the snakes appeared outside the waterfall, Zane was ready. A group of about twenty Constrictai came out of the ground. In the middle of the group was one clutching Mira. Zane froze as he saw Skalidor pull himself out of the ground. This was a big deal if a leader of the Serpentine had shown up.

Zane made eye contact with Alex and Nya on the other side of the waterfall, nodding at them. Looking up, he could see Lloyd's blond head as he tried to spy on the snakes, still bitter about being tricked all that time ago. Cole was better hidden, as Zane couldn't see his dark head of hair.

"Get to the waterfall," Skalidor ordered Mira. He grabbed her arm and tugged her to the edge of the river the waterfall flowed into.

Mira was still dressed in a tank top and shorts, and she was grateful for the heat of the summer. Without it, she'd be freezing in that water. There was no way to get to the waterfall without getting in, so she took a deep breath to calm herself, before slipping in. The water was comforting, and she swam with long, confident strokes to the base of the waterfall.

"Mira!" Zane couldn't help himself anymore. "You have to get the weapon and keep it away from the snakes!"

Skalidor and the rest of the Serpentine whipped toward Zane, hissing angrily at his intervention. Alex and Nya jumped out of the bushes on the other side of the river, catching their attention. In the abandoned house, Kai growled as he saw how the snakes leered at the girls. He felt protective, more so than normal, and his hands sparked as his anger flared.

"Ninja-GO!" Zane yelled, and Alex and Nya echoed the battle cry as they spun into their suits, weapons now in hand. Skalidor's eyes greedily lingered on the two silver weapons that the girls held threateningly.

"Mira, you have to get that weapon!" Alex called to her, never taking her eyes off of the snakes. Her eyes narrowed as half of the snakes began to move towards her and Nya.

"I know it doesn't make sense yet," Nya yelled, "but you have to trust us. You're the only one that can do this, and whatever you find in there, it won't hurt you." She waved one of her fans in front of her, sending a few Serpentine that had gotten too close flying through the air.

Mira watched in awe as gusts of wind flew from the fans that the dark-haired girl was holding. It looked like she was _creating _the wind. Next to her, the girl in grey and red closed her eyes in concentration. Mira gasped as shadows began to creep out of her hands and katana, covering some of the snakes. They all hissed angrily as things began to take a chaotic turn.

Zane knelt by the side of the river, looking down on Mira, who was lightly treading water. "You can do this, Mira. I promise we will explain everything as soon as you're back safe." He smiled gently at her before standing up and grabbing his shurikens.

Three more figures joined the fight from an old house facing the waterfall. One in red, one in blue, and an old man in white. The one in red instantly gravitated towards the one in grey, and the blue one went towards the girl in yellow. The shadows cleared around the snakes. They'd done their part to confuse long enough for the group to get together.

Mira yelped as a roar came from above. A large dragon with four heads flew over her. A green tornado and a brown, earthy tornado came down to the ground, revealing a kid in green and a very tall man in black. She blinked. She had not expected the group to be this big.

The one in white - Zane - turned back to see her still in the river. "Go, Mira!" he yelled before throwing one of his shurikens at a snake.

Mira turned away before she could see the blade pierce the snake's skin, wincing at the thought. She dove under the water, letting it wash over her as the chaos turned into peace. It covered her, and she easily went under the pounding element that no one else could pass. She came up for air before she needed it, seeing the cave she'd seen the inside of only once before, many years ago.

It was surprisingly small, with a ceiling that Mira might have been able to touch if she was taller. She got out of the water onto the unnaturally smooth ground. This place wasn't made by a god, but it looked like it wasn't natural either.

She turned back to the water cascading down, covering the mouth of the cave. She reached a hand out, sensing its great power. She watched it, wondering why she was able to make it through when no one else could. Sighing, she turned back towards the cave. None of this made sense, and she only had more questions than answers.

Though the cave was small, Mira could see rippling water in the back of it. She took a few steps forward to see a shallow pool in the back of the cave. Upon further inspection, she saw that the water went far down, and it appeared to be curved like a tunnel.

Biting her lip worriedly, Mira looked back to the wall of water she'd come from. Dimly, she could hear fighting on the other side of the waterfall. She turned back to the water, choosing that over the snakes.

She lowered herself into the pool, sitting on the side for a moment to relax and get ready to hold her breath. She breathed in and out slowly for several moments before taking a big breath and holding it as she dove down. Her legs kicked and propelled her down through the tunnel. She went several feet straight down before turning to the left.

The tunnel was jagged, not smooth like the cave she had started out in. It was also cramped, giving her just enough room to kick her legs, but not much room to move her arms. She grabbed rocks to help keep her moving forward methodically.

The light couldn't reach this far down, and the rocky surroundings cast shadows everywhere. Mira had to squint to see, and she was grateful that her eyes weren't too bothered by the water. Still, the lack of light unnerved her, and she began pulling herself forward faster. She couldn't see very far ahead of her, and there was still no end in sight. What if there was no end? What if she got stuck down here?

Panic shot through her as she noticed her oxygen starting to run low. She could hold her breath for a long time, but she had her limits. Her feet were helping her cut through the water, but her movements were becoming more frantic.

The tunnel took a sudden turn to the right, and Mira felt that she was close to the end. Her lungs began to burn as she saw light in the water a few feet ahead. She kicked harder, using her hands to pull her to the surface.

Gasping for air, she dragged her tired body out of the water. She was surprised that she was so out of breath. With her experience, she hadn't expected to run out of air like that. The tunnel had gone on for far longer than she'd thought. What on earth did she get into?

"Oh, thank you…" she murmured to herself. If the tunnel hadn't ended when it did, she would've been stuck.

She lay on the floor for several minutes to calm herself down. Her thoughts swirled like the water she was just in. She'd never been betrayed by water before, but this had come dangerously close. She reveled in the feeling of air flowing in and out of her lungs.

Finally looking up, Mira's eyes widened as she saw the room she was now in. It was modeled like the first one, a small cave, but it wasn't empty. There were several wall hangings around the room, each depicting a different picture from the legend of how the waterfall was created. She slowly got to her feet as she noticed the rippling of water on the walls, like a light was reflecting off of water from somewhere.

Mira turned her eyes toward the center of the room, where a pedestal sat. It was surrounded by a bubble of water, and the light was coming from whatever was inside it.

"The treasure…" she muttered absently.

As if in a trance, Mira stepped toward the pedestal. Her feet carried her to it, her hand reaching toward the bubble. She hesitated before touching it, afraid of popping it. The water kept its shape as she reached inside and grabbed the treasure - a whip with a purple gem on the handle.

The gem glowed as she pulled it out of the water, the bubble popping as soon as the whip was out in the open. Mira stepped back as the water got all over the floor.

She flicked the whip experimentally, watching how the water on the floor moved a bit with it. She'd seen a couple movies where they used whips like this, but she'd never used one.

Mira heard something move behind her, and turned around. She shrieked and fell to the floor, looking up at the dragon that had appeared out of nowhere. Turning her head away, Mira caught sight of one of the tapestries that had fallen to the floor. It had been covering a hole in the wall, where the dragon had likely come from.

"Please…" she whispered, looking back at the dragon.

She couldn't help but notice the swirls of purple and blue and green on the dragon, like the ocean. Her eyes were a deep blue-green, and Mira found herself staring into them. She felt a sudden connection to the dragon. Hopefully it wasn't about to eat her.

It reached its nose down to her forehead, and when its nose brushed against her, a flash of light made her close her eyes. When she opened them again, she wasn't in the cave anymore.

Instead, she was sitting on a tiny island surrounded by water. The dragon wasn't next to her anymore, and was instead on the other side of the water, staring at her with those piercing blue-green eyes.

Mira slowly stood up, watching as the water lapped at her feet gently. The whip was still tightly clutched in her hand, and she flicked it gently.

The water in front of her shifted slightly. She looked up at the dragon, who just kept staring at her.

Sighing, she gripped the whip tighter and concentrated on moving the water. Her eyes were closed as she imagined creating a path through the water for her to walk on. She moved the whip in a sweeping arc, feeling the graceful power of the water through the way the whip moved.

When she opened her eyes, the water had parted for her. She began to walk through the path that she had created, water closing it behind her. Mira made her way to the dragon, stopping right in front of it on solid ground.

Mira felt oddly confident as she looked up. Her back was straight, chin lifted as she looked up at it. A slow grin lifted the corners of her lips.

The dragon seemed to smile back, and Mira looked around the dragon. She trailed a hand along its side, feeling the cool, slick scales under her touch.

"Beautiful…" she muttered breathlessly.

There were ridges along its neck and tail, but they were white, reminding her of the foam of a cresting wave. She touched one gently, marveling at the dragon.

"You need a name," she said as she looked over the dragon. She thought back to when she was inside the original cave, watching the waterfall and its great power. Somehow she knew that this dragon had the power of that waterfall.

"Cascade," she said with certainty. It felt right as it rolled off her tongue. This dragon wasn't suited for a silly, feminine name like Droplet or Aqua. It deserved a name as powerful as she was.

The dragon - Cascade - lifted its head a little, as if proud to have a new name. Her eyes glinted, and she lowered her body to Mira's level. She moved her wings as an offering for Mira to climb on.

And Mira did, sitting on top of the gorgeous beast that she had been afraid of only moments ago. She thought back to her sketchbook at home, and couldn't wait to go home and draw the creature she was sitting on now.

A flash of light made her close her eyes once more, and when she opened them she was sitting on the dragon's back on top of the waterfall. She looked down to see everyone still fighting, making her wonder how long she'd been in there.

The dragon roared, making everyone still standing look up. Mira leaned forward on the dragon, holding on to its scales.

Zane threw his final shuriken directly at Skalidor, pinning his tail to the ground. The snake hissed angrily as the shuriken cut through his scales. He grinned at the snake. "Leave, Skalidor. You will not take the kunoichi today."

Several snakes were lying on the ground, either knocked unconscious or bleeding heavily. Alex and Jay were both nursing light injuries, but the Serpentine had taken the most damage. Skalidor shot the ninja a deathly glare before turning to his snakes.

Before he could have the chance to yell, a wave of water rose from the river. Zane's eyes widened as he turned to see Mira on top of a dragon at the top of the waterfall, swinging her whip with the water she now controlled. An odd feeling fluttered through him as he watched her. Her shyness was temporarily gone, and now she had the confidence of the kunoichi she would soon be joining.

Her dragon flapped its wings and landed beside the water on the ground. Mira slipped off, holding her whip out in front of her.

Nya and Alex walked over to her, flanking either side of the newest kunoichi. Nya held a fan in each hand, sending gales of wind to make the water tower higher over the rest of them, protecting only the three of them. Alex held out her katana, and her grin was deadly as darkness began to seep out of her weapon. Between the three of them, they would make an unstoppable team, and Zane knew that the next kunoichi would only strengthen them further.

"Skalidor," Nya called out, making direct eye contact with the Serpentine. "I suggest you go now, while you still have a chance."

The snake sneered at the girls, enraged that they were able to use their powers like this already. Their plan had counted on the newest kunoichi being too weak to control the water, even with her weapon.

"Retreat!" he yelled, bending down to snatch the shuriken out of his tail. The snakes that couldn't support themselves were helped by others, and they all tunneled back underground.

Releasing a breath, Mira sank to her knees as she let go of the water. The power had taken its toll on her, since she'd never used it like that before. Alex knelt down beside her as Nya used the winds to make sure the water went back into the river and not all over them.

The ninja all ran up to her excitedly, and Mira looked up at everyone that approached her. The colored outfits swirled in her mind, the colors melding together as a headache overcame her.

The old man stepped forward and offered her a kind smile. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, Mira," he said gently. "I promise we'll be able to explain everything to you. Will your parents be home soon? We'll need to explain things to them as well."

"Um…" Mira held up the whip. "What exactly will you be explaining?"

"You, Mira Kalua, are the kunoichi of water."

**Poor Mira. No explanations yet! But she and the girls did get a little time to shine by themselves. The team really is coming together, if I do say so myself. **

**Next chapter will be focusing on Mira as she decides whether or not she's going to join the team. As you may have noticed, fighting isn't exactly what Mira's best at. She just really loves the water! All of those water scenes were really fun to write, considering I don't actually like water all that much. **

**Please read and review!**


	12. Okay, Let's Try This Again

**So apparently I keep updating every other week, so maybe that'll be my official schedule now. Even though I have everything written through chapter 17, but that's okay. This story has already taken off in a few different directions than I originally intended, and if I need more time to explore those directions, then that's what will happen. **

**Anyway, I'll admit this isn't my favorite chapter. It more or less just... sets things up for later. You'll see why in a minute, and some things won't be fully explained until later. **

**I want to give a big shoutout to FireWriter316 for dropping not one but THREE reviews! Thank you so, so much! (You got it right the first time. Kalex for the win ;) )**

**Without further ado, here's chapter 11!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago**

Mira clutched the whip in her lap as she sat across the room from the ninja, the kunoichi, and the old man. She'd 'met' most of them earlier that day, but the only name she remembered was Zane. The two girls that had tried to talk to her hadn't offered up their names yet, but they both seemed nice. That was good, since she suspected if she agreed to this, she'd be working with them a lot.

The old man introduced himself as Sensei Wu. She couldn't help but marvel at his incredibly long beard. He gave off a sense of comfort and wisdom.

"I'm Nya," the dark-haired girl said next, drawing Mira's attention to her. She was the girl in yellow and orange, and the colors complemented her darker skin well. She was holding hands with the boy in blue next to her, giving Mira plenty of reason to believe they were dating.

"I'm the kunoichi of air," she explained, holding up her hand as she spoke. A miniature tornado appeared, and Mira watched as it swirled in her hand. "I'll be one of your teammates, and I'm really looking forward to working with you and your powers. If you join us, you'll live with Alex and I."

She gestured to the girl with red hair, who waved at Mira. "Hey, I'm Alex." Her skin was fair and covered in freckles, and she had beautiful blue eyes. "I was the newest kunoichi before you came along. I've been with them for a couple of weeks or so, and if you want, Nya and I can tell you all sorts of things before you decide if you want to join us or not. For example, Kai here has a _terrible _fear of-"

The boy next to her covered her mouth with his hand, trying to muffle what Alex was about to say. It worked, as Mira couldn't tell what Kai had a terrible fear of, but Alex's eyes narrowed, and the boy let out a yelp before snatching his hand away.

"Did you just _lick _me?" he asked incredulously. He wiped his hand on his leg as everyone else laughed.

"Anyway, I'm the kunoichi of darkness." Alex was still laughing, but she concentrated for a moment and made the shadows appear again, coming out of her fingers like claws. She wiggled them at the boy in red teasingly, and retracted them when he rolled his eyes.

"Um…" Mira started to say something before hesitating. The group dynamic confused her a bit, but they all looked at her expectantly. "Why are there only three of us," she pointed to herself and the two girls, "and five guys?"

Sensei Wu nodded, and it looked like he was thinking before he answered. "The kunoichi of nature is still out there, so there will be four kunoichi soon. Until then, it's just the three of you."

The boy in blue started talking next. "Yeah, I'm Jay, the ninja of lightning. We don't have golden weapons anymore, so the most I can do is give little zaps, like this!"

The boy in red yelled angrily as Jay stuck his finger into the other boy's side, presumably shocking him. Angrily shoving the ninja of lightning away, he crossed his arms.

The rest of the group laughed again, Jay louder than the rest of them. Nya gently grabbed his other hand as well, as if to keep him from tormenting the other boy further.

The boy in blue was cute, but in an average sort of way. She could only assume that there was something about his personality that had utterly captivated Nya, since all the other guys were very attractive as well.

Zane spoke up next. "I have already introduced myself to you, but I'll do it properly this time." He spoke in a rather formal way, which Mira would normally have thought of as odd, but it seemed to suit him. His platinum blonde hair was in a crew cut, and his skin was like porcelain. He looked delicate in so many ways, but she'd seen him fight and knew he was anything but delicate.

His eyes, however, were what kept capturing Mira's attention. She had a weakness for blue eyes, and his were unlike any she'd ever seen before. Alex's were lovely, but Zane's were ethereal. Everything about him was, but it was the eyes like crystals that kept drawing her in.

He held her gaze as he spoke, "I am Zane, the ninja of ice. Since ice and water are closely related, I would be happy to help with your training if you ever want my assistance."

She nodded with a shy smile, knowing the extra help would be much appreciated. She watched as he conjured a few snowflakes which floated gently through the air.

The boy in black cleared his throat. He was sitting next to the young boy in green. "I'm Cole, the leader of the ninja. I'm the ninja of earth," he said simply. Unlike the others, he didn't offer a demonstration of his power.

He was probably the most conventionally attractive of the ninja, with his dark hair sweeping across his face and his green eyes like a gem you could find underground. His jaw was strong and square, and Mira could tell there were muscles hidden under his gi.

The ninja in red sighed. "I'm Kai. Ninja of fire," he said grumpily. He was clearly still upset about being picked on earlier, though he was significantly more upset after Jay shocked him than when Alex licked his hand.

He held out his hand, and a small flame danced across his palm. It reflected in his amber eyes and lit up his face. He seemed more relaxed after using his element, and the flickering flame reminded Mira of his spiky brown hair. He looked edgy, and Mira knew it would take them a while to get along.

The young boy in green stood up quickly, as he was the only one that hadn't introduced himself yet. "I'm Lloyd, and I'm the green ninja!"

He looked expectantly at Mira, obviously expecting a response from her. She smiled awkwardly in return, wondering if this was someone's kid brother they'd been forced to drag along.

"Congrats…?" she offered with a weak smile.

He had green eyes as well, and his blond hair was in a basic haircut, like he hadn't found his own style yet. He still had the baby fat that kids have, making Mira think he wasn't even a teenager yet.

Lloyd looked very put out by her lack of a reaction, and started concentrating. His hands began to glow green, and Cole's eyes widened next to him.

"NO!" he yelled, pulling Lloyd back down on the couch with him.

Mira stared at him, shocked by his outburst. He offered her a sheepish grin before muttering something to Lloyd, who sighed and nodded before crossing his arms and pouting like Kai had earlier.

Sensei Wu stood again. "Lloyd is my nephew, the son of Lord Garmadon. His powers are great, though his age prevents him from controlling them properly. He will one day be able to use the ninjas' power as if they were his own, as well as controlling his unique element. He is still young, but his destiny is to one day defeat his father to save Ninjago."

Mira gasped at that, horrified by the very idea. Her and her parents didn't have the closest relationship, but she couldn't imagine the idea of possibly killing one of them someday.

The young boy hung his head, hiding his face from those around him. Next to him, Cole put his arm around Lloyd in a comforting manner.

"Wait, isn't Lord Garmadon the one that defeated the Great Devourer?" Mira asked, remembering seeing it on TV and being grateful that she was nowhere near Ninjago City.

Chuckling to himself, Sensei Wu started to respond before Kai spoke up.

"It was only for his own agenda. If the Great Devourer destroyed Ninjago, then he had nothing left to take over." Kai seemed angry, and Mira knew why he was the ninja of fire. His temper made him a clear choice. "Besides, it was an excuse to get our golden weapons. Now we're weak, since we needed the golden weapons to use our powers."

Sensei held up his hand to quiet the angry ninja, who sank back into his seat. Alex whispered something to Kai that seemed to calm him down.

"My brother is great at deception. The Serpentine were sent here to capture you and your silver weapon to take you back to Lord Garmadon. His recent actions would have led you to believe a lie, and though you are no fool, he is good at manipulation," Sensei told her. He let out a bitter sigh. "We are all deeply sorry for ambushing you earlier, but things today could have gone worse."

Mira shuddered as she imagined the snakes dragging her underground again. The suffocating darkness still flashed through her mind, occasionally making her headache flare up again.

A key was inserted into the lock on her front door, making Mira bolt up. Her eyes were wide as she stared on in horror, watching as her parents entered the house, talking quietly about their day. It took them a moment to realize their living room was full of people in oddly colored costumes, and they stopped in the hallway, giving Mira a stern look.

She ducked her head, trying to figure out what to say. With everyone's attention on her, she could only stammer blankly.

Luckily, Sensei Wu stepped forward. "We are very sorry to impose, Mr. and Mrs. Kalua. We are the ninja and kunoichi, a team that is going to save Ninjago, and your daughter is destined to join us."

Neither of Mira's parents offered their first names, and instead laughed amongst themselves. "That's ridiculous," Mr. Kalua said. "There's no such thing as destiny."

Mrs. Kalua expressed a similar sentiment. "Besides, why would we let our daughter go with a group of strangers?"

Mira backed against the wall in the hope that she could disappear into it. She reached up to tug on one of her curls, winding it around her finger.

"We need Mira to save Ninjago," Sensei insisted. "Would it be alright if I stayed and talked to both of you about this while Mira gets to know her teammates?"

Mr. and Mrs. Kalua shared a look before Mrs. Kalua spoke up. "I don't like how you assume we're going to let our only daughter go with you, but I suppose we'll at least hear you out before we say no."

Turning to Mira, Mr. Kalua said, "Take them out to the ocean or something, Mira. Be back within two hours."

Mira nodded obediently before gesturing to Alex and Nya, who followed her out the door. The rest of the ninja remained in her living room, awkwardly looking at each other. Sensei Wu gave them a look, and they silently slipped out the front door.

The girls had already disappeared, so they stared at each other. "Um… now what?" Jay asked.

"I'm hungry," Lloyd commented loudly, nudging Cole with his elbow.

The rest of the team shrugged, and Cole sighed. "Let's go find some food, I guess."

…

Mira leaned against the sand, glad that she'd put on clean, dry clothes when she got home earlier. The sun was slowly making its descent, but the sand was still warm from earlier. Alex and Nya were relaxing beside her, having changed into civilian clothes once they left Mira's house. Well, _fled _was a better word for it.

"You know, I didn't expect your parents to be like that," Alex said beside her. She yelped quietly, presumably from Nya hitting her side.

Nya sat up on her elbows to look over at Mira. "I'm sorry about that."

Letting out a sigh, Mira sat up as well. "It's okay… she has a point. They're not exactly the kind and loving parents every girl dreams of."

The two other girls gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry too," Alex said. "But we might as well take advantage of this. Do you have any questions?"

Mira thought for a moment, looking out at the ocean. "How long would I be gone?"

Nya shrugged, which wasn't the answer Mira was hoping for. She was rather attached to her town, and while saving the world might be neat, what would the cost be?

"There would be sacrifices," Nya began slowly. "Alex and I train practically every day since we don't have the head start that the ninja have. They train Lloyd daily as well, but we go out into a field since we mostly have to work on using our powers. But, um… we can try to find a lake or something for you."

Mira began to play with her hair again. "But there's no idea of how long I'd be gone?"

Sighing, Alex shook her head. "Mira, there's not a day that goes by that I don't miss my family, my home. It's different, but Nya, the ninja, even Sensei… they're becoming like my family. Nya's like a sister to me, and Lloyd is like my little brother." Alex smiled as she thought of the young boy. "It's hard to leave everything you know behind, but we'll help you through it if you let us."

That eased Mira's nerves a bit. "And… where would I be living?"

The two other kunoichi chuckled a bit. "Well, we have a small apartment in Ninjago City," Nya explained. "We used to have a giant flying ship, but it belongs to Lord Garmadon now."

"A… giant flying… ship?" Mira was baffled by that. Ships were meant to sail, not fly. And how would a giant ship even manage to fly?

"Yes, it's amazing," Nya grinned. "I used to help control it, since I'm really good with technology and building stuff. Jay helped too," she said, thinking back.

Mira looked to Alex for more explanation, but the other girl just shrugged. "Beats me. Like I said, I've only been with them for a couple of weeks. I just saw it once."

Mira nodded slowly. "So… what about when you're not training?"

To her surprise, both girls blushed. "Well, we've only had one day off and… I went on a date with Jay." Nya had that silly grin on her face again. Mira had already noticed that Jay was the only one that could make her look so happy.

Alex managed to control her blush by the time Mira looked over at her. "Kai showed me Ninjago City. Well… we only saw part of it, but it was still really cool."

Mira stared at them both for a long moment. "I mean… what's something you do for fun? Like a hobby?"

The other girls chuckled awkwardly. They lay back down on the ground, feeling the warm rays of sun and watching as the sky began to fill with colors.

"I like to build things," Nya said. "Before I trained every day, I would spend a lot of time at a mechanic shop. I'm working on the Ultra Sonic Raider for the ninja. I have a few tricks in mind for the next time they use it, but I guess I've been so busy with training that I completely forgot about it until now."

She sounded sheepish, and there was a certain longing in her voice. That was her passion, and though kunoichi training was fascinating, it was more distracting than she'd originally thought.

"So… you're too busy to do the things you love?" That definitely wasn't a selling point for Mira.

"I mean, I like reading books," Alex offered. "I don't have that many with me, but… I brought a few. I did gymnastics, so I actually have fun practicing that in training."

Mira looked between the two of them sadly. She didn't know if she could join them if all they did was train all the time. "Have you saved anyone yet?"

"Actually, yeah," Alex laughed. "The boys are dorks, and we saved them from a bunch of pirates."

Whatever Mira expected, it definitely wasn't that. "Uh, pirates aren't around anymore."

"I _wish _they weren't around," Nya said. "But Garmadon created them, and they tried to destroy Ninjago City."

Nya said it so casually that it took a moment for Mira to understand what she'd just said. "Wait, Garmadon _created _pirates?"

The water began lapping at Mira's feet, beginning to cool after a long day in the sun. She drew her knees up to her chest, watching as the tide started to come in. The other two girls scooted back as well.

"Well, we have silver weapons, you know?" Nya waited until Mira nodded before continuing. "The boys have golden weapons, and when the Great Devourer tried to destroy Ninjago, Garmadon took the golden weapons. If a powerful being gets all four weapons together, they can turn them into the Mega Weapon. Garmadon managed to do that, and now he has the power to create things."

Mira's eyes widened. "Whoa," she whispered. "Are there any limitations?"

Alex laughed. "Well, if there weren't any, then we'd be pretty screwed. I mean, he created _pirates. _I think it has to take a lot of power for him to do that, since the pirates managed to take control from him." She rolled her eyes, amused at the idea of Lord Garmadon being defeated by a ragtag team of pirates.

The idea made Mira giggle a little as well. She grew solemn quickly, knowing their time alone was short. "Why should I join?"

Her question made Alex and Nya grow quiet. The waves could be heard crashing against the shore, some of the water washing up more peacefully by their feet. Mira dug her toes in the sand and let them contemplate for a few minutes.

"You feel the water, don't you?" Nya spoke up first. She didn't wait for an answer, and instead began to swirl the air around the three of them like a lazy tornado. "There's a connection, and you know it. Maybe it scared you at first, knowing you weren't like everyone else, but now that you know there's a reason, you're relieved." The tornado dissipated, leaving Mira slightly breathless as she took in Nya's control over her powers.

Alex began talking next, the shadows she controlled creeping out of her fingers. "I didn't like my powers at first. I felt insulted when Sensei told me I controlled darkness. I thought it would make me evil, but it doesn't. There's a lot I don't understand yet, but I think I'm getting there."

One of the shadowy tendrils brushed Mira's leg, and it made her shudder. The cold shadows were careful, with a certain tenderness that Mira hadn't expected. They brushed one of her curls out of her face gently.

"They can do terrible things, but as long as I'm in control, they're not dangerous," Alex smiled as she pulled the shadows back, forming a snake in the sand instead. She laughed as it was dashed away by a wave. "It's beautiful, and so is your power. You were chosen for this, Mira. Whatever is making you hesitate, we can help."

Her voice was so sincere that Mira stood up and sighed. Both of her hands went out in front of her as she concentrated. A couple beads of sweat trickled down her face as she battled with the harsh strength of the ocean. One hand went to her whip, which glowed purple as Mira sent a wave crashing on the rocks a few feet away, sending a spray of water at the kunoichi. Nya and Alex moved to cover their faces, but Mira stopped the droplets of water. They hovered in the air, the setting sun reflecting off of them. Each droplet glittered as Mira formed it into a ball, her hands shaking from the effort.

With a gasp, Mira dropped to her knees. The water burst, drenching her clothes for the second time that day.

Nya rushed to her side, but Mira held up a hand. Her wet hair hung in front of her face, preventing Nya from seeing her eyes. Mira's shoulders began to shake.

"What if I… what if I can't do it?" Mira whispered, lifting her head. A few tears glistened in her eyes.

Alex knelt by her side as well. "Sometimes you won't be able to," she admitted. "That's why we're a team. If one of us can't do it, then we do it together."

Nya nodded in affirmation. "Without us, the ninja would have gotten crushed when they went up against the pirates. They need us, just like we need them, and each other. None of us can do this alone." She touched Mira's shoulder gently, offering a kind smile.

Mira stayed quiet for a while, reflecting on their words. If she went with them, she'd be leaving everything she'd ever known. She wanted to tell them to leave her alone and never bother her again, but something made her hesitate.

Whenever Mira got stressed, she would search out the ocean. And now, instead of it bringing her peace, it only served to remind her of the difficult choice in front of her. Something that had always been a comfort to her was now her biggest stressor. It felt like a betrayal, and it confused her greatly.

She put her head in her hands, trying to clear her mind. Colors flashed across her vision - purple, teal, green, crystal, dark blue. Cool colors, like the ocean. As she let out a deep breath, she knew what her decision would be.

Grimly, Mira stood up, shaking off Nya's hand. She turned to the other girls. "I'd like to go back to my house now. I've made my decision."

…

The five ninja sat together in a cheap pizza place, celebrating their first team outing in several weeks. Besides training, they had been too busy to get together as a group. They didn't have any of the girls with them this time, so they were up to their usual antics again.

Lloyd was enthusiastically eating a slice of pizza, and his mouth was so full that the other boys could hardly understand him. The rest of the team wasn't quite as eager to eat, casually chatting as they relaxed in their chairs.

"You know, I haven't had pizza this satisfying in a while," Jay managed to talk around his food. His cheeks were full of pizza, reminding the others of a chipmunk. "With all that nonstop training, I haven't had a meal this greasy in a while." He let out a loud belch before taking a sip of his soda.

Chuckling, Cole leaned back in his chair. His feet were propped on the empty chair beside him, and his arm was draped over the back of his chair. "With all those fancy meals Zane makes, I never thought I'd miss eating something like this."

"Me 'oo!" Lloyd mumbled through his food, a few crumbs spraying out of his mouth. There was no doubt that the young boy was _thoroughly _appreciating the meal.

"Hey, say it, don't spray it!" Kai fired back, sweeping some of the crumbs off the table. "Just because the girls aren't here doesn't mean we can't have _any _manners." He made a face at Lloyd before grabbing another piece of pizza.

As the four boys bickered, Zane stared in front of him. He tuned them out, mindlessly eating his food. All he could think about was how he had failed. If he'd just been able to convince Mira sooner, she never would've run away and been taken by the Serpentine. If he'd just gone after her instead of giving her space, those snakes wouldn't have gotten her.

He blamed himself for everything, clenching his fists in frustration. His grip grew tighter as his frustration grew, until Cole yelled beside him.

"Zane, what are you doing?" he cried out, watching him in horror.

Zane looked down at his hand, which had shattered the cup he was holding. He'd clutched it so tightly that his steel hand had broken it. Broken shards of glass were embedded in his hand, piercing the covering that acted as his skin. The rest of the glass was now spread across the table in front of Zane, shining under the flourescent lights of the restaurant.

He stared at the shards blankly. His other hand reached out and easily pulled out one of the broken pieces. The rest of the team stared at him, their shock evident.

It was then that Zane knew their shock was in reference to not only the breaking of the glass, but his own lack of a reaction. As a "nindroid," he didn't feel like the rest of the team. While his father had made him remarkably lifelike, there was no way to replicate human emotion and sensation. Thus, he was the odd one of the group.

Noticing that the group was still silent, Zane looked up with a peaceful smile. "I am alright." He continued picking shards of glass out of his hand. When no one said anything, he looked up again to see the concerned faces around him. "What is it?"

Kai and Cole looked between each other before Cole spoke up. "Zane… we're your teammates. You don't have to hide anything."

"Yeah," Kai agreed. "It's been a long day, but it all worked out in the end."

"She hasn't said yes yet."

The table went quiet again, reflecting on Zane's words. That was the hard part about all of this - the kunoichi had to make their own decisions. If one of them said no…

The silence was broken by Jay's phone buzzing, and he checked it quickly. "The girls are heading back to the house. Mira has made her decision."

Everyone took in a deep breath, knowing that her decisions would greatly impact the future. Cole stood up first, looking over his team. "Let's go see what she has to say."

**Oooooh, a cliffhanger. Will she say yes? Will leaving everything behind really be worth it?**

**In case you hadn't noticed, each mini arc as we get a new kunoichi focuses primarily on the new kunoichi and a ninja. So for all you Zane fans, we're about to dig deep into what makes him tick! Literally! I've had a lot of fun writing about him as a robot, because it's such an interesting aspect of who he is. It's what sets him apart - but maybe he doesn't want to be different. Agh, he's just so interesting to write.**

**I can't give away much about the next chapter, but I will say this: Garmadon's coming back, and he has a new, dangerous idea...**

**Anyway, please drop a review if you can! I'll be back in a couple of weeks!**


	13. What's The Right Choice?

**Hey there! College has been killing me lately as we near the end of the quarter, but my weird schedule has given me some time off and maybe I'll finally finish another chapter! At the very least, I've had this chapter done for a while and it's ready to be posted. **

**Not gonna lie, this is a mostly filler chapter. Here we explore characters some more and Mira gets her kunoichi suit, but my favorite part might be near the end, so you'll need to read that to see what it is! Let's just say things are about to get very interesting for our team...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago**

"I'll do it," Mira told Sensei Wu. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest as she faced him and her parents. "I'll do it on one condition."

Her parents gaped at her, surprised that she was agreeing.

"But Mira-" Mr. Kalua began before being cut off by his daughter.

"Dad," she said quietly, waiting for him to listen. "Sensei said that you guys agreed to let me go if I was okay with it, and I need you to honor that."

Her parents looked at each other, clearly not having expected her to say yes. They still doubted their daughter after all these years, but now Mira had used their doubt against them.

"Fine," her father grumbled unhappily.

Sensei Wu hid a smirk behind his tea, taking a long sip. "What is your condition, Mira?"

Mira turned back to the older man, knowing Alex and Nya were behind her as she spoke. "I want to be able to go home anytime I want, and you have to respect that decision."

The other two girls stiffened behind her, clearly nervous about that. They weren't sure what would make Mira want to abandon everything to go home. Nya knew that things could go wrong all the time, and there was no telling what the breaking point for Mira would be.

Though the girls and Sensei Wu were a bit concerned by her condition, her parents certainly weren't. Both had smug looks on their faces as they looked at Sensei. "I guess we can agree to that," Mrs. Kalua said haughtily. "Now, if you don't mind, we'd like our daughter for one more night."

The couple began ushering everyone to the front door, smiling and waving up until Nya, Alex, and Sensei Wu were outside. As soon as they were out the door, Mira's dad closed the door. The couple turned to Mira, their faces stony.

"Mira," her mother began sternly, "we have a lot to talk about tonight."

…

The kunoichi and Sensei Wu looked at each other on Mira's front porch. The ninja hadn't even caught up to them yet, as the visit had been so brief.

Alex whistled lowly. "Well, I'm glad they're not _my _parents." She yelped when Nya elbowed her side. "I mean, my parents were chill with it!"

"We were lucky she said yes at all, Alex," Nya told her gently. "Not everyone is ready to drop everything to be a kunoichi like us."

Knowing that Nya had a point, Alex sighed. "I guess you're right," she mumbled sheepishly. Her parents hadn't loved the idea either, but they'd been supportive. She was grateful for that, and it seemed like Mira wouldn't even have that.

"Hey, what're you guys doing out here? Did they kick you out? Did Mira say no?" Jay always drew attention to himself with his big mouth, rapidly rattling off questions without giving anyone a chance to answer. "What do we do if one of them says no? Are we just supposed to kidnap them or something? Sensei-"

The rest of the guys facepalmed behind Jay as Sensei Wu simply held up a hand. Luckily for everyone, the talkative ninja got the hint.

When Sensei didn't immediately offer up information, Cole stepped in as the leader. "Sensei… she did say yes, right?"

Nya and Alex shot each other a look and pasted somber expressions on their faces. Alex ducked her head when she saw the ninjas' faces fall. She let a few shadows wash over her face, obscuring her smile.

"Mira Kalua will not be joining us…" Sensei trailed off, having seen the little show Alex and Nya were putting on. He paused for a long moment, letting the ninjas' imaginations run wild before speaking again. "... tonight. Her parents wanted to spend one last night with her before she joins us tomorrow."

Zane had felt his gears grind to a halt when he saw Alex and Nya's faces. He even forgot to refresh the system to restart his motor when Sensei went along with them. Now, his brain was scrambling to reset his system. He'd read several books where a character lost their breath and struggled to catch it again. If he was human, that's what he suspected would have happened to him just now.

Still, Zane felt the urge to smile and let his lips curve up into a rare smile.

The rest of the ninja got similar looks on their faces to display their excitement. Kai and Cole high-fived each other while Jay did a weird dance.

Nya sidled up to Jay and put a hand on his arm. He calmed down and grabbed her hand, gently stroking it with his thumb.

"Since neither of the girls were offered lodging tonight, we'll need to find a hotel with enough rooms for all of us." Sensei began to walk back into town. "Come now, students. The faster we're all in bed, the faster we can begin training Mira."

Zane ran the logistics through his head as he trailed behind everyone else into town. With a town this size, there were probably only one or two hotels, and they were probably small and more like inns. But since this was a popular spot for swimming and surfing, on top of the fact that it was a port city, there were likely more hotels than he thought.

The first hotel they came to was packed full, and so was the second. The third had one room with a double bed, which Alex and Nya took. Then it was just up to the ninja to find a place to stay.

When they reached the last hotel, their feet were dragging. Lloyd was leaning heavily on Cole, yawning almost every two seconds.

By a stroke of luck, there were not one but two rooms in the last hotel. The group split up, with Kai, Cole, and Lloyd in one room, and Sensei, Jay, and Zane in the other.

Sensei had taken the couch, piling several blankets on top of it to make it softer on his back. Jay wasn't a pleasure to sleep with, so Zane was of course stuck with the ninja that kept kicking him in the side.

It was a long night for everyone.

…

It turned out Mira's parents didn't really want to talk. That is, they didn't want to talk for a while. They went back to their room first, leaving Mira to herself while she packed. Her closet mainly consisted of shorts and t-shirts since she lived in such a warm climate. If she ever went anywhere without the warmth of the sun, she'd be screwed.

The lid of her suitcase was open, and she continuously folded and put away clothes. Her movements were robotic, as she wasn't really in the right headspace.

She couldn't quite figure out why she'd said yes. This was completely crazy and out of her comfort zone, but…

Her eyes drifted back to the whip that lay on her bed. As if noticing her attention on it, the gem began to glow again. She heard the sound of waves crashing on the shore, almost like she was on the beach or listening to a conch shell.

Fascinated, she took a step closer to the whip. Her feet seemed to move on their own, and before she knew it, she was right in front of the whip. She reached out to touch it, and-

Her door opened, and Mira stepped back quickly as if she'd been caught about to do something wrong. Her gaze flew to her now open door, which, as she'd suspected, framed her parents. Their faces betrayed no emotion - not that she'd expected them to.

Her mother stepped in first, heading to her window. She remained standing but didn't say anything for a moment. Her father stood at the foot of her bed and prompted Mira to sit down. Mira took a seat on the edge of the bed, putting a hand on the whip to calm her nerves.

"Do you know what this will do to us?" Father's voice was deathly quiet. He kept his eyes on his wife, who still had her back turned to her only child.

Blinking back tears, Mira kept her head down. She knew that she wasn't supposed to respond yet.

Mother let out a loud sigh that was meant to be heard by all the occupants of the room. It made Mira shrink back a little, clutching tighter to the whip.

"I can't believe this," her mother finally muttered. She turned around, her face making her irritation known. She had many similar features to Mira, but Mira had rarely seen her mother smile or laugh. "Where did we go wrong, my dear?"

Of course, the sentiment wasn't aimed at Mira. She turned her attention to her father quietly.

He mirrored his wife's earlier sigh, expressing his own disappointment. He ignored his wife's question, instead focusing on Mira. "Mira, how could you do this? What are we supposed to tell people? You still have to go to school, you have responsibilities. You're throwing them all away on a whim. This isn't like you."

A bitter part of her wanted to cry out that they didn't know what she was really like. They'd never bothered to ask, they were always too busy at the clinic or doing anything but talking to her. She was expected to become a doctor like them. That was the plan, and she was not to stray from it.

"Mira, your father is trying to talk to you. It's rude to ignore someone," her mother snapped.

Mira slowly raised her head to look her father in the eye. "They need me, Father. I am trying to do my duty-"

"Your duty is here, Mira." Her father cut her off as she tried to explain herself, making her stutter and go silent again. "If you go with them, then you're about to waste everything we've taught you."

"I have to," she said quietly.

This time, her parents both remained quiet at her words. The conversation was over, and she knew it. Without another look at her, they strode quickly out of the room. The only thing they left was the stench of disappointment, making Mira's eyes sting more.

As soon as the door closed, she sank to the floor as the world disappeared behind the tears that clouded her vision. She hugged her whip to her chest and watched as the gem pulsed comfortingly. She whimpered softly, trying not to alert her parents. Emotions didn't really exist for them, and if she showed them, she was _weak._

The next round of sobs choked her, and she felt as if she was drowning in her emotions. She covered her mouth with her arm, trying to stifle the sound. Tears kept streaming down her face, and she closed her eyes, hoping the darkness would be a comfort.

Unfortunately, the same thought kept reverberating in her mind. It haunted her, and she knew it would take a long time to go away.

_Did I make the right choice?_

...

The sun rose the next day, shining through the thin curtains. Zane's internal alarm went off at sunrise, waking him up when it was time.

He was on the edge of the bed, with Jay spread out like a starfish in the middle of the bed. As soon as Zane stood up, Jay shifted so he was diagonal, somehow taking up even more room than before.

With a sigh, Zane headed to the bathroom to freshen up first. There wasn't much he really needed to do besides change clothes and fix his hair.

Zane combed through his short, platinum blond hair. His crystal blue eyes were trained on his reflection in the mirror, taking in his pale complexion. His skin was smooth and soft, and he'd even fixed his hand from where it had been punctured last night. There were a few little scars, but he'd be able to fix that completely later.

His hands clutched the sides of the sink. Zane closed his eyes and concentrated, trying to make the ice within him show.

When he opened his eyes, a few snowflakes floated in front of his face. A sad display compared to what he used to be able to do.

It frustrated all of them, how limited their power was. The kunoichi had their silver weapons, reminding the ninja of what their power used to look like. Limitless, a power they could use and never need to scrape the bottom of the barrel.

Zane heard a crash outside the bathroom door. Jay was up. He quickly unlocked the door and got out of the way as Jay ran into the open door and stumbled into the bathroom.

The ice ninja shook his head in exasperation. Sensei Wu snored peacefully on the couch, dead to the world. The old man would sleep until he _wanted _to be awake.

After grabbing his communicator, Zane slipped into the hallway. He shot off a message to the guys, wondering who was awake.

Kai and Cole immediately responded, and after a few minutes Jay sent a barely comprehensible message as well. Knowing the ninja of lightning wouldn't be awake for much longer, Zane just headed down the hall to Kai, Cole, and Lloyd's room.

The first thing he noticed when Cole let him in was Lloyd, who had ended up surrounded by blankets on the floor in front of the couch. Lloyd would _not _be happy when he woke up.

This was one of those times Zane was glad he couldn't feel human sensations.

Zane had gotten dressed earlier, so he was in a white button down and khaki shorts. Over in the corner, Kai was pulling on a red tank top, already wearing a pair of black shorts. Cole was still in just sweatpants, effortlessly showing off his impressive physique.

"How do you think Mira is going to fit in?" Cole mused as he grabbed his clothes.

Kai flopped on the bed, dangling his feet off the side. "She seems too quiet for this."

Raising an eyebrow, Zane gave Kai a look that made the ninja of fire blush hotly.

"Not that there's anything wrong with being quiet," Kai said quickly, running a hand through his already messy hair. "I just mean… I don't think she has the right attitude for this."

Thankful that he could change quickly, Cole stepped out to diffuse the tension. He wore dark clothes like always, taking comfort in the color.

"Zane, Kai doesn't mean anything personal towards you or Mira," he said to Zane. "I have to agree that she does seem quiet and I think she might struggle with the fighting aspect of being a kunoichi, but she was chosen for a reason. None of us came into this thinking we'd be fighting snakes every other day." His voice was smooth and gentle as he talked to Zane.

When Cole turned to Kai, his voice hardened a bit, taking on an authoritative tone. "Kai, not all of us joined with our fists swinging like you. I really hope you won't be as judgemental when Mira gets here later."

Kai grumbled to himself before sighing. "Sorry, guys. I guess I'm a little nervous about all of this still." He leaned against the wall, looking over at Lloyd across the room.

The other ninja followed his gaze, their faces softening. What they were doing now… it was all for him.

"He's not the only one you're worried about, though," Cole said quietly. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, giving Kai a pointed look.

Kai's hand went back to his hair, tugging on it slightly. "Of course he's not, but look at him. He's just a kid," he whispered.

Their voices were hushed now while they talked about the sleeping kid across the room.

"We are all children," Zane responded factually. "He is just the youngest of us."

"It's not fair," Kai declared suddenly, hitting his hand on the bed. "None of this is fair, and it's especially not fair-"

"What's not fair?" A sleepy voice came from the other side of the room. "And… why am I on the floor?"

The ninja could barely see Lloyd's blond head under the blankets. One of his hands came up, trying to free himself from the blankets that had trapped him.

Ignoring his first question, Cole focused on the second. "When I helped you get in bed last night, you were on the couch. It looks like you rolled around so much that you got stuck in all those blankets and fell on the floor."

Lloyd stayed quiet for a minute. "Oh," he said simply. He rolled on the ground as he attempted to get out of the blankets.

Without knocking on the door, Jay burst into the room. Like the others, he was in his signature color. "Guys, come on! We need to go get the girls and Mira!"

"Technically, it is you that we have been waiting on," Zane stated calmly, ignoring Lloyd as he finally got on his feet.

Cole nodded. "Yeah, sparky. You snoozed a little too long," he teased.

Lloyd disappeared into the bathroom as the ninjas teased each other, and for a moment, it was just like old times.

…

Sensei Wu knocked on Mira's door, his students waiting off the porch. He took a step back as the door opened to let Mira out. She was wearing a backpack and had a small suitcase in one hand.

He watched his newest student falter under everyone's gaze and decided to save her. "Are your parents gone, Mira?" He made sure to ask quietly, since he suspected the answer already.

Her eyes darted towards the door. "Yeah. They left for work."

Sensei just nodded in response. "Well, Mira, would you like your new uniform now or when we arrive in Ninjago City?"

With all eyes on her again, she flushed and looked down. "Ninjago City, please."

Nodding again, Sensei Wu headed off her porch. "Come now, students. We need a place to summon the dragons."

The whole group headed off, but Mira trailed behind the rest. She preferred to watch them interact instead.

Taking the lead was Sensei, who was chipping in to whatever Jay and Nya were talking about. The couple was holding hands, and she thought back to last night. They were always in contact with each other. Whether they were holding hands or his arm was around her shoulders, it was clear they just liked touching each other. It wasn't gross like they were making out all the time, but it was a simple display of affection.

Jay let go of her hand to search his pockets for something, and when he came up empty-handed, he and Nya shared a worried look. Mira didn't understand what they were looking for, but it seemed important.

While the couple explained the situation to Sensei, Mira looked to Zane and Cole. They were chatting quietly and kept looking behind them, their faces also full of concern and… something Mira couldn't read. She instead focused on the last group right in front of her.

Kai, Alex, and Lloyd were all talking and joking with each other. It looked like Kai and Lloyd were messing with each other and making Alex laugh in the middle.

At some point, Kai put his arm around Alex's shoulders. She didn't seem to mind, sidling closer to him. When Lloyd made her laugh again, Kai looked at her instead of Lloyd. Her grin was infectious, and Kai and Lloyd shared a secret smile.

Cole sidled up to the trio, walking alongside Lloyd. Mira frowned as she tried to figure out where Zane had gone.

She jumped as she felt Zane come up beside her. He looked a little sheepish at that.

"I apologize, I did not mean to scare you," he said with a smile. His face was warm and kind, unlike his element.

Mira felt herself relax a bit. "It's alright. I suppose…" she hesitated for a moment before continuing, "I suppose I just wasn't expecting any of you to walk with me."

Something in Zane pinged at her words. "I understand. Due to my… nature, I am often the one left out of the group," he explained sadly. For a moment, he considered telling her what 'nature' he was talking about, but he decided against it.

Instead, he looked ahead at his brothers, watching them fondly. This morning had been a breath of fresh air compared to the chaos it had been lately. They were solidifying into a group again, this time accepting the new members as part of the team.

"They do not mean to," Zane began again, drawing Mira's attention back to him. "They do not understand things sometimes. They think that I am odd. That may be true, but it is sometimes too much for them to wrap their heads around."

Mira gasped, her brown eyes wide. "That's horrible," she whispered. Her eyes sparked with a flash of anger. "That's not fair. You're a person, you're a part of the team too! They can't just exclude you because they don't understand you." She was gesturing wildly with her hands. She was angry, but her voice never grew loud.

Without thinking, Zane caught one of her hands in his own. It was shaking with injustice. Mira immediately paused and looked at him, mouth slightly agape.

"I do not mind," he said softly. When he saw Mira begin to grow frustrated again, he kept talking. "I do not mind because I am not excluded when it matters. If they have jokes that I do not understand, or they want to play a four-person game, then I'm okay with being the odd man out. When we fight, we lean on each other. We help each other out, no matter what."

Letting out a sigh, Mira looked ahead again. "They seem nice," she muttered, more to herself.

Remembering her hand in his, Zane squeezed before letting go. "They are nice. Just give them a chance, okay?"

Before she could respond, the others were calling their dragons to the field she hadn't realized they were in. A little late, Mira called for Cascade, who landed by the other kunoichi's dragons.

Nya's dragon looked like a sunset. Alex's dragon looked like night itself, with terrifying blood red eyes. Mira's dragon reminded her of her favorite place to be - the ocean. Again, her fingers itched with longing to draw all of these experiences.

A heavier dragon landed, calling Mira's attention to it. With a squeak, she hid behind Cascade's wing and slowly peered over at the massive dragon.

The most notable thing was its size. Her dragon paled in comparison. The next thing she noticed was the four heads. Each looked slightly different, as if it wasn't originally one dragon.

"That's the Ultra Dragon," Zane said beside her. "My brothers and I used to have our own dragons, but they matured and turned into the Ultra Dragon, who belongs to Lloyd."

Mira blinked. She looked over to where Cole, Lloyd, and Sensei Wu were climbing on the Ultra Dragon. Sure enough, Lloyd sat in front to control the beast.

"If you would like, I can ride with you and assist you," Zane offered with a smile.

Before responding, Mira looked at her dragon. She had absolutely no idea how to control her, so this was probably a wise idea.

"Okay," she nodded. Carefully, she pulled herself on the dragon's back. Her backpack was still on, but she left her suitcase on the ground.

Mira bit her lip, trying to figure out what she was going to do with her bag. Before she could think of anything, Zane had picked it up and carried it over to Cole. They exchanged a few words before Cole nodded and held it in front of him.

Zane headed back over, climbing on the dragon behind her. "Would you like me to hold your backpack?"

A flash of panic rippled through her. A sense of protectiveness surged up as she shook her head quickly. "No thank you," she managed.

The ninja of ice had noticed her unusual mannerisms when he asked about the backpack. It was in the way, but she was clearly uncomfortable having anyone touch it. He briefly wondered what was in the bag, but came to the conclusion that it must be personal.

The Ultra Dragon began to take off, the kunoichi following. Zane leaned in as close as he could behind Mira. "Just be gentle," he instructed quietly.

Mira followed every direction he gave her, but he was the only one talking for most of the ride. He mostly gave instructions, but he asked her a few questions that she only responded to in one or two words. He was a little put out by that, but he was glad she seemed to be adjusting well.

After a couple hours, the skyline of Ninjago City was visible. Zane saw the sun high in the sky, its rays gleaming off the buildings. He told Mira to be careful of the buildings.

Her grip had tightened a bit at the sight of the large city. She'd never been anywhere this big or terrifying! People swarmed all over the city, and there were cars everywhere. There were buses transporting people, as well as a few cabs. The sun was too bright, making her squint as she looked at the scenery.

Taking in a deep breath, Mira tried to calm down as she breathed out slowly. She led her dragon over to the field where everyone else had already landed.

The field was different than normal. With the addition of Mira, Alex and Nya knew they'd need to be stationed by a lake of some kind. This place had an open grassy area with a lake and a forest right beside it.

"Mira Kalua, you are the purple kunoichi of water," Sensei told her once she stepped off of her dragon. "Please take off your backpack for a moment."

Mira did as she was told, leaving it resting again Cascade's leg. She stepped closer to the old man.

He gave her a soft smile before yelling, "NINJA-GO!"

Mira's world disappeared for a moment, and she was slightly off-balanced when the moment was over. Sensei has given her the kunoichi uniform, and Nya and Alex had gotten into theirs as well. Their uniforms were different from each other, and hers was unique as well.

Similar to Alex's suit, Mira had a long, purple, tunic-style top that went to the tops of her thighs. It swayed as she moved, rippling like water. Under the tunic was a pair of teal leggings that disappeared under the tall purple boots she was wearing. The sleeves of the tunic were tight and went to just below her elbow. A pair of short fingerless gloves covered her hands. A blue belt was wound around her waist, with a loop to attach her whip.

To top it all off, she had a purple mask similar to Alex and Nya's. It covered the lower half of her face, only leaving her eyes and forehead exposed. Part of her hair had been pulled back with a purple ribbon to keep it out of her face.

As if in a trance, Mira wandered over to the lake and grabbed her whip out of her backpack. The gem in the handle glowed brightly as she cracked it, sending a spray of water into the air.

Everyone nearby got soaked, including Mira herself. Zane seemed to be the only one spared, as he had partially hidden behind her dragon.

Mira blushed darkly, tucking her whip away. "I'm so sorry," she said.

Sensei Wu laughed, and the others joined in. "It's alright, child. You are the kunoichi of water."

…

Far away, on the Dark Bounty, a messenger had arrived for Garmadon.

A dark hand slammed against his desk. "What do you _mean _she got away?" Lord Garmadon roared. "You had her, and then you gave her up?"

The unfortunate snake on the other side of the desk began to stutter. "Sssir, I - we - no one sssaw this coming! We had - _Skalidor _had her, but when she went to get the sssilver weapon, we couldn't get her back!" The snake was trembling in fear of the raging man in front of him.

With the Mega Weapon clenched tightly in one hand, Garmadon slammed his other three against the table again. "Skalidor, you say? Send him in, you fool!"

The snake ran away, almost running into the door on his way out. He kept trying to apologize pathetically until he was out of Garmadon's sight.

Sighing loudly, Garmadon leaned back in his chair. "Idiots," he mumbled.

The snakes were brighter than the skeletons, but not by much. Their average intelligence was only pulled up by the leaders, who were sneaky and manipulative. They could easily outsmart the ninja, but they were always defeated in the end.

But now, with the snakes at his side, and the Mega Weapon in his hand, he could accomplish anything! The kunoichi were important to his plan in the end, but…

His mind drifted back to the kunoichi of darkness. Her power would be the most useful, but any of them would do in a pinch. If he even had one, the ninja would do anything for her.

That's when the idea sparked. If he could only find the kunoichi of nature before the ninjas - then he'd be fine. If only there was a way…

Automatically, he turned to the Mega Weapon. He racked his brain for the right words to say to make his wish come true.

Before he could utter the words, his door banged open again. Skalidor came in looking slightly put out. "You called for me, Lord Garmadon?" His voice was low and rumbly.

"Could you at least knock?" Garmadon yelled incredulously.

The Constrictai leader had the decency to look sheepish under Lord Garmadon's glare. "I'm sssorry, Lord Garmadon. Uh…" he paused for a moment. "You wanted to sssee me though, right?"

Lord Garmadon sighed again, rethinking his earlier statement about the intelligence of the Serpentine. For a moment, he wished Skales was back. That moment ended when he remembered what the snake had tried to do with his son.

"You led the mission to get the kunoichi of water," Lord Garmadon stated accusingly. "I sent you, and you failed. Do you have _anything _to show?"

Skalidor thought for a moment before pulling out a small object. "One of the Constrictai pulled thisss off of the blue one. Didn't even notice it wasss gone."

Lord Garmadon grabbed the object and peered down at it. It looked like a simple compass, but no matter which way he pointed it, the needle didn't move. Angrily, he looked up at Skalidor.

"You brought me back a broken compass?"

The Constrictai rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, um, I thought you could find a use for it."

"Get out," Garmadon commanded sternly.

The Constrictai general didn't bother saying anything else before heading out the door. He knew he'd failed his mission. Failure was not an option.

Garmadon slumped back in his chair, his thoughts drifting back to the kunoichi. He put down the golden weapon, staring down at the compass. When it didn't move, he sighed and threw it on the table.

"I wish I could find the location of one of the kunoichi," he whispered quietly, hoping his shadows would hear him.

When he didn't get a response, he yelled and stood up, ready to throw another tantrum. What he saw on his desk made him stop entirely.

The needle on the compass was slowly moving to point definitively to the east.

Lord Garmadon grinned darkly. Maybe the compass did have a use after all. If it gave him the location of the next kunoichi… then all he needed now was a plan.

**Ohhh man. Garmadon has the compass, and it sure does look like it works! It looks like we'll be seeing our next kunoichi pretty soon, but don't worry! She won't come into play until after the Double Trouble episode - which, by the way, is going to be a WILD ride. It just so happens that Double Trouble is going to take place over three chapters. I couldn't squeeze it into just one!**

**Next chapter is going to be a lot of FLUFF and character interactions. Again, not much happening plot wise, but it was a really fun chapter to write. It offers even more insight for Mira and Zane, and you'll just have to wait and find out what happens! **

**Anyway, please read and review!**


	14. Cooking and Sharing

**Man, everything is falling apart right now. This chapter might be a week later than normal, but I'm not even sure about that. This weekend has been insane, my college has moved to online classes and might kick us out soon, and it's a bit hard to do online classes for my major. But alas, here we are. **

**Enough about me, this is a cute chapter! Go read it!**

**Disclaimer: Ninjago is not mine! Otherwise we'd have a lot more cute bonding scenes like this.**

The next time the ninja all got together outside training, it was a week after Mira had joined the team. The five guys were just chilling in their apartment, taking turns playing video games. The only two that hadn't switched out were Lloyd and Kai, who were locked in a vicious battle over the top score. This game, Zane was sitting out again, but he had volunteered to sit for a minute.

The other guys were yelling over each other as Zane looked on. Lloyd and Kai were on the inside, with Cole and Jay flanking them. Jay was the first one out after Kai killed his character. With a triumphant yell, Kai bumped his shoulder into Jay's.

With a groan, Jay flopped back onto the floor, hitting his head on the foot of one of the beds. He immediately sat up and rubbed his head, watching the remaining three battle it out.

"You're going down, Lloyd!" Kai yelled, focusing all of his efforts on the green ninja's character. His character threw a blast of fire that Lloyd dodged.

Lloyd cackled as he slashed Kai with his sword. "Nice try, but I'm better!"

Growling, Kai managed to clip Lloyd with his next blast of fire. "Who's won more games though? Oh right, me." He shot Lloyd a cocky grin.

"Yeah, winning by one isn't a huge achievement," Cole shot back. He jumped high in the air and used his fists to pummel Kai, who couldn't get a shield up fast enough.

Kai shot off into the air, his health plummeting. He managed to get back on the platform. "Hey, it's better than only winning two like Jay over here."

"Hey!" Jay protested. He crossed his arms. "It's not my fault I keep getting ganged up on. You guys keep attacking me first!"

"Actually," Zane corrected, "you've been placing third for the most part. You've never been directly targeted first, though you have placed last several times. Lloyd is most often targeted first, but he moves so quickly that someone else gets caught in the crossfire." This was why he preferred watching. He could easily gather data and calm down the frustrated ninja when they got mad at each other.

Nevertheless, Jay kept looking like he had been personally attacked. He moved from the floor to sit up by Zane on the bed.

"I think Kai's gonna get out next," Jay hissed a little too loudly.

"No way!" Kai protested, changing his focus to Cole. He sent three consecutive blasts of fire towards Cole, who only managed to dodge one.

Cole panicked a bit as his character remained stunned, letting Kai charge up a fire blast. "Come on, come on!" he urged his character, mashing the buttons.

Just before Kai released the energy, he was hit from behind with a sword. The fire he was storing up disappeared as he flew through the air, this time unable to recover. "Hey! No fair, you snuck up on me!"

"Thanks, Lloyd!" Cole crowed, reaching over for a high five.

Lloyd returned it excitedly. "Thanks for distracting him long enough to do that!" He shot Kai a devious look. "Don't worry Kai, the other losers are on the bed!"

He and Cole both cackled before attacking each other anew. Cole's health was more depleted, so Lloyd would eventually win, as Lloyd was also the better player. Still, both ninjas gave it their all as Kai stomped over to the bed.

Of course, Lloyd ended up triumphing. "'Who's won more games though?'" Lloyd said mockingly. "Looks like we're tied now, so ha!"

Narrowing his eyes, Kai got off the bed. "I'm definitely going to beat you this time." He grabbed his controller, setting up for the next game.

Beside Zane, Jay sighed. "I'll sit out this round," he said, patting Zane on the shoulder.

Zane kept his sigh internal. With Kai out for blood this round, this would be a brutal game. Zane and Cole both got last place the most, so it was just a matter of time until one of them died.

While Zane got his character set up, Jay got himself comfortable on the bed. He laid down on his back and let his head hang off the bed so he could see.

The talkative ninja stayed quiet until the game began. As the other ninja jumped into action, he opened his mouth and began to talk.

"So… does anyone else think that Mira's kind of… strange? I mean, I went over to the kunoichi's place to pick up Nya the other night, and she was sitting on her bed and she just kept _looking _at me. Then she started writing stuff down in a little notebook, almost like she was taking notes on me. Is that weird? Like, has she done that to anyone else?"

The other ninja stayed silent as they concentrated on their game. After a few tense moments, Cole got out. With a sigh, he turned back to Jay. "Yeah, actually."

"Since I'm the leader of the ninja, and Lloyd doesn't always need all of us to help with his training, Sensei asked me to help out the girls when they all need to focus on their training. I usually pair up with one of them, since it's harder now that they have an odd number. This time, I was paired with Mira."

_Cole faced off against Mira, working solely on hand-to-hand combat. They were both in their suits. Their weapons were off to the side. Cole used his brute strength, trying to teach Mira how to defend herself against someone much stronger than her._

_Lashing out quickly, Cole swung at her with one of his fists. Mira ducked below his fist, but his leg swung out, hitting her in the side and sending her flying. She crashed to the ground with a yelp._

_Feeling a little sorry, Cole went over to help her up. "You need to be prepared for the next move. In a fight, the enemy won't stop when you're knocked down."_

_He extended a hand for her to grab. She took it without saying a word. Cole helped her up, but something caught his eye._

_Her hands were covered in black and blue marks. It looked like she'd completely destroyed her hands doing something. Almost like she'd been punching a wall repeatedly._

_Mira noticed his line of sight and his widened eyes, quickly taking her hand out of his. She refused to comment, just getting back into a fighting stance._

"_What happened?" Cole asked sharply. He kept his eyes on her, watching her reactions._

_She fidgeted with her gloves, trying to hide the marks under them. "It's none of your business," she said quietly. _

"I mean, she wasn't trying to be rude, she was just… secretive." Cole still seemed unsure of what had happened, he just knew that Mira was a little… off.

Lloyd let out a yell as he got out, angry that Kai was going to win another game. He didn't appear to notice that it was _Zane _that killed him instead of Kai.

"Ha! This is gonna be _so _easy," Kai gloated, turning his attention to the ninja that hadn't won a single game yet. To his surprise, Zane moved easily out of the way of every shot of fire.

Acknowledging his defeat, Lloyd went to join the others on the bed. He pouted, upset over his loss. "I don't like her."

Surprised by his disdain, Cole and Jay both shot the young ninja a look.

"Why not? I don't _dislike _her, she's just quiet and weird," Jay said bluntly. He didn't notice Zane tensing up.

"I keep trying to talk to her, but just like Jay said, she ignores me for her notebook. I just don't get it!" Lloyd crossed his arms and glared at the TV.

Cole chuckled softly. "Hey, we all thought Zane was weird at one point. Don't let it get to you, kid. She may be a little different, but I bet there's a reason for it. She may not be a nindroid like Zane, but maybe it's just that she's shy."

Before he could respond, Lloyd was distracted by Kai yelling in front of the TV. To his surprise, and the surprise of everyone else in the room, he'd been defeated. Zane was the triumphant ninja this round. The ninja of fire was yelling, absolutely shocked that he'd been beaten by Zane.

"There's no way!" Kai's mouth was agape as he turned to stare at Zane. "You haven't won a single game! How did _you _win?"

He wasn't trying to be insulting, as Zane knew well by this point. The ninja of fire just wasn't good at filtering himself when he was all worked up. Due to his element, when he got upset, he was likely to get angry.

"Please don't speak ill of Mira," Zane said quietly, revealing his motivation for winning the game. It brought back memories of when he was the odd one out because they didn't understand him, and he wouldn't wish that on anyone else. "I had a reason for my strange behaviors, and she does too. You just need to bother to find out what they are."

The other ninja looked down, ashamed of their actions. It was true, they hadn't really gotten to know Mira yet. She was quiet and shy and didn't seem to want to talk to any of them, so they didn't try. She only talked to the other girls and Zane.

Zane heard his phone ring and answered it. "Hello?"

"_Zane! It's Alex. It's Mira's turn to cook tonight, would you mind coming over and helping her find a recipe? Nya says you're a really good cook, and we'll both be out tonight. Would you?"_

His skills were almost legendary among the ninja, so he wasn't surprised that he'd been recommended to help Mira find something to make. "Of course, Alex. When should I be over?"

"_Whenever you're ready, actually. Nya and I will be gone by the time you get here, so just knock. Maybe bring a plan, she's a little lost right now."_

"I'll be headed over momentarily," he promised before hanging up. He turned to the rest of the ninja.

"It appears I'll be helping Mira with dinner tonight. I'll do dinner another night," he told the guys.

They all groaned at the missed opportunity of eating Zane's food. "Come on Zane," Kai complained. "You can't leave us hanging like this!"

"Don't worry guys," Cole spoke up. "I'll do dinner tonight!"

Everyone else's eyes widened comedically. "NO!" they shouted in unison, horrified at the very idea of Cole's _infamous _cooking.

Looking hurt, Cole pouted a bit. "You don't have to sound so disgusted," he mumbled.

Zane escaped while the ninja argued over who was going to cook. He ran through his cooking database, trying to pick a recipe that was easy to make and didn't require many supplies, since he had no idea what the girls had in their fridge.

The walk to their apartment wasn't too far, and he made it in a few minutes. He arrived and knocked on the door, hearing someone rustling inside. The sound stopped when he knocked, so he knocked again when he didn't get an answer.

Mira cracked the door open slightly. "Hello?" she asked. When she saw it was Zane, she opened the door for him. "Hi, Zane. What… what are you doing here?"

Pausing just inside the doorway, Zane gave her an odd look. "Did Alex not tell you? She asked me to come help you cook dinner."

"Oh!" Mira looked a bit sheepish. "I'd forgotten." She left it at that, going back over to the small kitchen and looking at the fridge aimlessly.

After a moment of just watching her, Zane went over by her side. He peered into the fridge, noting its few contents. Next, he opened a few cabinets to see what else they had to make food with.

"What did you have for lunch?" Zane asked, trying to come up with a unique plan.

Mira raised an eyebrow. "Just a sandwich."

With a nod, Zane began to grab ingredients. "Does pasta sound okay? There's not much to it, and you can decide what kind you want." He paused before grabbing sauce. "Alfredo, marinara, or pesto?"

The kunoichi of water blinked at the choices she was given. "Um… alfredo."

Zane began to grab several ingredients from the fridge, placing them beside the stove. "Wonderful. Have you ever made your own alfredo sauce?"

"Well, no," she admitted. Mira stood behind him, watching as he kept grabbing things. "I can read a recipe, though."

That was true, of course. Reading and following a recipe was simple, but she'd always had help of some kind. She usually only cooked when her mother needed assistance, and her mother always bossed her around. The experience was a bit soured because of that. Now every time she had to cook, she got nervous.

She tugged on one of her curls as Zane turned back to her, having set everything up. He offered her a smile, which she returned after a moment.

"Would you mind getting the water?" Zane asked politely. He turned to her expectantly.

After thinking about it for a moment, Mira flicked her hand to summon water from the faucet. She looped it through the air, controlling its path around her and Zane to pour into the pot he had set out. She grinned as Zane chuckled at her little display.

Zane set the stovetop so the water would begin boiling. He grabbed the salt shaker and put a pinch in to season the water as it began to heat up.

Mira watched in fascination. "What was that for?" She didn't remember her mother ever adding salt to the water when making pasta.

"It gives the pasta itself more flavor while it's cooking in the water," Zane told her before pulling out another pan. He set the stove to a lower temperature and turned to Mira. "Can you get six tablespoons of butter, Mira?"

Responding quickly, Mira measured out the stick of butter and put six tablespoons into the pan. She stepped to the side, not wanting to be in Zane's way.

Zane fixed her with an odd look, his eyes scanning her like he was calculating something. "Mira… Are you alright?"

He seemed so genuinely concerned that Mira was thrown for a moment, scrambling to come up with an answer. "Of course - of course I am! Why wouldn't I be?"

His crystal blue eyes didn't leave hers for a second, piercing something in her. He didn't let up until Mira broke eye contact, skittering away from the stove like a scared animal. She went over to her bed, wishing she could crawl up there and grab her sketchbook…

She knew she wasn't alone for long, as she soon felt a presence behind her. Zane kept his distance though, just close enough for her to know he was there.

"Mira, something must be wrong. Do you fear you've made a mistake?" There was a hint of something in his tone, something that reminded Mira of apprehension. She couldn't see his face, so she couldn't be sure what he was really feeling.

Sighing, Mira kept her back to him. "No, I don't feel like I've made a mistake yet. It's just… hard to explain."

For a moment, they were both silent and still. Then, Zane put a hand on her shoulder. His touch was cool, she could feel it through the thin fabric of her shirt. A shiver ran through her as she turned to face him.

Zane watched the frown on her face, knowing he had to do something to fix it. Instead of pressing her, he gently took her arm and led her back to the stove. The butter had melted, so he began mincing garlic and adding it to the pan. "Mira, how is the water looking?"

That was all it took for her to snap out of the funk she was in. She went to look at the water, seeing a few small bubbles begin to rise to the top. "Not yet, but soon."

The two worked together. Mira quietly listened to Zane's instructions and followed through without a single misstep. By the end of the lesson, he was able to step back and let her finish it off by herself.

When Mira turned to look at him with a proud smile, Zane felt the way he had just before he and the other ninja competed for the Blade Cup. Butterflies! Her smile was radiant, and not a look that she often showed. He was completely mesmerized by it.

It took a moment for him to remember to congratulate her. He smiled softly. "Very nice."

Their fettuccine alfredo looked delicious, and Mira would even be able to brag and say that she'd made the sauce herself. It wasn't a hard recipe, but even Zane knew that trying something for the first time didn't always turn out well. Luckily for him, and the dinner they'd made, she was a fast learner.

After noticing that Nya and Alex were going to be a while, Zane put the lid back on the pot and left it on a low simmer so they could eat warm food later. He turned to look at Mira.

"You did very well, even though you were so nervous in the beginning. May I ask why that is?" Zane was hoping that she'd open up to him more, and maybe give him the chance to bond with her in return.

Mira's smile faded a bit. Part of her wanted to keep quiet, but she decided to talk to him anyway. He was her best chance at making a friend, and she found those hard to come by.

"Well, I've never cooked by myself, so that's what really made me nervous," she admitted, not getting to the root of the issue just yet. "And… I've only ever cooked with my mom, and she gets pretty… critical when I mess up."

Zane blinked as he remembered the cold woman. His memory bank brought up a recording of her voice, playing it inside his head. "_I guess we can agree to that." _Her face was devastatingly beautiful, so similar to her daughter's but without the warmth and kindness. He was a bit reserved after spending so much time without a family, but Mira was reserved _because_ of the time she spent with her family.

"This time, you didn't mess up at all," he reassured her. "The dish is going to be wonderful, and I'm sure the others will agree."

Mira nodded slowly like she was thinking about something. "Can I show you something?" she finally asked.

Without hesitating, Zane nodded. "Of course."

He watched as she headed back over to her bed and grabbed something off of it. It looked like a book - could this be what Jay and Lloyd were talking about?

"Are you a writer?" The words just seemed to come out, and Zane immediately felt sorry. "I apologize, I don't mean to intrude."

For some reason, that made Mira laugh. "It's no intrusion, I'm showing this to you. I guess as a… thank you of sorts. For the lesson, I mean." She paused for a moment. "Oh, and no, I'm not a writer."

She waved her hand, inviting him to sit on the bed beside her. He obliged, keeping his hands on his lap, posture straight and stiff. It suddenly felt odd to be with her, just the two of them. He brushed the feeling aside, leaning closer as she opened the book.

Immediately, he was blown away.

The first few pages had clearly been torn out, but the one that hadn't was a two-page spread of Mira's dragon. She'd captured the colors beautifully, creating the ombre that covered her dragon. Instead of the dragon looking fierce, however, it was made with a look akin to a smile. Its eyes resembled the warmth the ocean could hold instead of the cold mystery of its depths. Cascade was rising from the water, her wings outstretched and sending sprays of water into the air. The sun was setting behind her, bringing the contrast of fiery colors.

She turned the page, this next picture still in the works. It was of her and the other kunoichi while they stood in front of the waterfall. The details weren't exactly right, since Mira had been a part of the event and hadn't seen it like he had. Besides, she didn't have a photographic memory like him - or rather, a memory bank.

The picture was fully sketched out, but no color had been added yet. Alex and Nya both had fierce looks on their faces, which Zane assumed Mira came up with from training. Her own face was more blurred, like she hadn't quite decided what she looked like as a kunoichi. Now that he looked at it again, he noticed that her whole body was fuzzy, without the details of the other kunoichi. Mira was sketched with her whip above her head, controlling the water behind her, but she wasn't positioned right. Even in her artwork, she still seemed to be self-conscious.

Before Mira turned the page, she looked up at Zane. "I haven't had a lot of time, so this is my last one."

As soon as she turned the page, everything made sense. It was a picture of the four ninja arranged around Lloyd. Like the previous picture, it was incomplete, but this one had color.

All of the ninja were in their uniforms, but they didn't have their masks on. She'd clearly done her research, as the pictures were all very accurate.

Cole's features hadn't been colored in yet, but she'd matched the ebony color of his hair and suit. Zane could see his muscular form and square jaw that set him apart. He even saw that Mira had made his eyebrows much thicker than the others, which made him chuckle.

Jay's hair and suit had been colored in as well, and Zane assumed that Jay's suit was colored the same day as Cole's. That would explain the black and blue marks on Mira's hands that Cole had seen. They weren't bruises, they were marks from her coloring. She'd even managed to get Jay's hair color. It was a shade of reddish brown that was hard to name exactly, which would also explain why she'd paid extra attention to Jay. Still, his face was kind and his eyes held laughter, even on paper.

Kai's wasn't very far along at all. He'd been drawn, but the only thing Mira had colored was his eyes. They were amber and burned with the fire he summoned. Zane could almost see the outline of a flame reflected in his eyes.

His own drawing had focused more on his features. His suit remained colorless, but it was white in nature in the first place. His skin was pale, and she'd kept the colors light enough on his platinum blond hair. His eyes were the opposite of Kai's, an icy blue to reflect his element.

The only completed figure was in the center of it all. Lloyd was captured in all of his boyish youth. He had a grin that lit up his face and eyes. His suit was just a few shades darker than his eyes, and he was surrounded by an image of each element, clearly reflecting his powers.

"It's wonderful," Zane breathed softly. "How do you do that?"

Mira flushed at his praise. "Oh, I still have a lot of work to do on them. I only finished Cascade since that's the color palette I'm most familiar with."

"Don't be so modest," Zane told her. "They are all amazing. I wish I could do something like that," he said forlornly.

Since he was a robot, he couldn't capture the emotions or creativity that those around him could. Cooking was the closest he could come, since he knew exactly what would enhance each dish and bring out the flavor in everything. Still, that was nothing like this. Mira could create something from nothing in a way he would never be able to.

Mira sidled closer. "Well I wish I could cook like you. That was like second nature, I couldn't have done it without you." She brushed a curly lock of hair out of her face.

For some reason, her comment hit Zane differently than all the other compliments he got on his cooking. He sat a little straighter. "Perhaps, but you are the one that did most of the cooking. I believe that makes you the real chef around here."

Mira laughed, the sound light and free. She was beginning to relax around him. "Hardly. I simply followed your directions. You didn't need a recipe or anything! It's like you have an archive of those in your head or something," she chuckled.

Zane awkwardly laughed with her. Part of him wanted to tell her the truth, but the rest of him reveled in the idea of being seen as normal. Nya had already confessed that she told Alex about the real reason behind his robotic mannerisms. She didn't necessarily treat him differently - none of them did, but he missed out on a few things.

Before Zane could come up with a response to that, he heard a key being inserted into a lock. He quickly stood up, nearly hitting his head on the top bunk.

The other kunoichi entered, laughing about something. They shared a look as they saw Mira and Zane.

"Hey, so… how was cooking?" Alex asked, looking between the two.

Nya ignored Alex's comment, instead wandering over to the stove. "Is this fettuccine alfredo?" she asked excitedly.

"It is," Zane answered, wandering over to the stove. "I apologize, it appears we did not clean up after ourselves." He began putting away ingredients.

Mira approached him, and Zane noticed that she'd hidden her sketchbook again. He assumed she hadn't even shown it to them yet. Maybe she was waiting for it to be done. It seemed to be a very personal thing for her.

She took the pan and began washing it in the sink. "It should still be warm." Mira smiled over her shoulder at them. "What were you guys up to?"

Nya and Alex exchanged another look. "Nya needed help with some stuff at the garage, so I picked up a shift there to help out," Alex said, but there was a hint of falsity in her words.

Zane politely excused himself, heading back to his own apartment and leaving the three girls alone. Mira put the cleaned pan away and grabbed three plates for them.

The other girls fixed their own plates and began eating. "Oh my gosh, this is amazing!" Alex said through a bite of food. She stared at the pasta for a long moment before beginning to eat again.

"This tastes just like something Zane would make," Nya said after she swallowed. She turned her attention to Mira. "Really well done."

Their positive reactions prompted Mira to take a bite after she realized she hadn't tried her own food yet. Her eyes widened as she put a bite in her mouth. It was full of flavor, more than she'd ever tasted in alfredo before. The homemade sauce really did wonders, and the flavors had soaked into the noodles themselves as well.

Nya chuckled at her reaction. "Ah, so you've never had a Zane creation yet. It's a magical experience, isn't it?"

Alex hummed through another mouthful of food. She was the first to finish her plate before going to get more.

"Hey Nya," Mira addressed the dark-haired girl, "what's the plan for training tomorrow?"

"You and I are actually going to help Alex with something," Nya responded. She looked to the red-haired girl expectantly.

Alex sat down again with her food. "I had a… theory. I told Nya about it, and she agreed to help me out." She looked a bit nervous as she talked. "I started wondering if I could communicate through my shadows. I mean, they're everywhere, right? And it might be a good idea to see if that was even something I could learn."

The normally confident girl was fidgeting in her seat, looking back and forth between her teammates like she was still unsure about the idea. When they didn't respond for a moment, she started eating the pasta again.

"I'll help," Mira told her. "What do I need to do?"

"You already know I'm with you on this too," Nya chipped in. "We'll work on it tomorrow, then. Get some sleep, girls. We're going to have a long day tomorrow."

**Was this sort of another filler chapter? Yes, yes it was. Was it still one of my favorites to write because I'm a sucker for putting the ninja and kunoichi in a more mundane setting? Yes. Yes it was.**

**Let's see... the video game sequence was taken from the few times I've played Super Smash Bros. I am not good at the game, but that's where the inspiration was drawn from. And yes, the guys talking about Mira being weird was definitely supposed to mirror when the did the same thing about Zane, except Zane is the one who did the defending this time!**

**And, let's be real, is it ever truly a ZanexOC story if they've never cooked together? Even if him and Mira end up just being friends, a cooking sequence was to be expected. Side note, I definitely had to look up an actual recipe for them. I have no idea how to cook lol.**

**Please read and review!**


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